


A different path

by Likeitlikethat2020



Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-19
Updated: 2021-03-15
Packaged: 2021-03-15 23:20:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 71
Words: 119,169
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29566695
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Likeitlikethat2020/pseuds/Likeitlikethat2020
Summary: What if something happened to change the course of events in the Season 1 finale? Governor Jameson was not killed and Steve and Kono were not arrested? Steve McGarrett makes different choices and changes the fate of the entire Five-0 Task Force. Set in 2010, immediately after episode 1x23 and AU after this. How would their lives look if a single event changed everything?
Comments: 143
Kudos: 34





	1. Unknown enemy

**Author's Note:**

> Dear Readers,  
> I am writing just this one note to you so that a few things are explained and will hopefully enhance your enjoyment of the story. This is my first and last fanfiction, as everything that I wanted to write is here. It took on a mind of itself and got very long, but rest assured that it's complete. This is 74 chapters long (over 100,000 words) – I will post at least 2 chapters a day so that the entire story is posted over the coming month. The events of Season 1 up until the very end of Episode 23 have all happened and then it goes AU at that point. You will recognize all your favourite characters and I have stayed as close as possible to events that happened later in the show if I feel that they could have happened in my new universe. For the actual show, the writers have to exaggerate the distinct personality traits of the characters to make it interesting; they are also forced to make the villains very James Bond-like, with seemingly never-ending ways to evade capture, as otherwise it would all be over in a couple of episodes and then no more franchise. I have no such constraints and so can write it as I would have liked things to have gone for my lovely Five-0 team. I love them all, but Steve is the absolute business and so this is very much centred on his life – but think of it like an eat-all-you-can buffet, with generous helpings of his entire ohana. I am not from the military, Hawaii or even the U.S. and so have had to research certain circumstances and make things up when required – so please put any inaccuracies down to artistic license. I have tried to Americanize my spelling from the Queen's English, but please do get in touch if you spot anything glaringly wrong or just to say how you are finding the story. If you want to post a comment just to say how much you hate it, then by all means go ahead but bear in mind that you could save yourself much bitterness in your life and just stop reading instead :)
> 
> I don't own any of the H5-0 recognizable characters or storylines, these are the property of CBS and their team of producers and writers and I give full credit to them for their wonderful creation. I am merely borrowing them for my own amusement. Any new characters are from my own imagination and belong to me.
> 
> I don't expect you to remember all the key plot points from Season 1 (this was back in 2010 – yikes!), so here is a very quick recap: Steve finds out his mother's car accident was actually murder and starts to understand why his father sent him and Mary away; the Yakuza steal the Champ toolbox and kidnap Mary; Steve first meets Wo Fat with the Noshimuri brothers on the golf course, but doesn't realize the importance of the man; Jenna Kaye rocks up and tells him exactly who Wo Fat is; Steve meets Wo Fat at a Chinese restaurant, who warns him not to keep digging into his family's past; Chin is held to ransom by Victor Hesse, who then burns the $10 million that Steve and Kono stole from the HPD evidence locker before Steve can arrest him; a rogue coast guard fakes a tsunami warning to steal the $28 million from the locker and Five-0 recover it but find that someone has already replaced the $10 million that they stole for Chin's ransom; Chin is cleared by HPD IA of taking the money, it was his uncle to pay for an organ transplant for Chin's aunt; Danny is exposed to sarin gas and nearly dies and is spotted by Steve in his hospital bed looking very cosy with Rachel; someone is returning the evidence from the Champ box to Steve bit by bit.

**Chapter 1**

Idly he scrunched up his toes in the wet sand at the water's edge and let himself be mesmerized by the little waves coming in and washing over his feet. He marvelled at the way the waves gave off the gentlest of shushing noises as they advanced up the beach.

He had been standing there just looking at the water pooling around his toes for some time now, staring at nothing in particular. Feeling light-headed he made to turn back towards his lanai, but stumbled over his own feet and found himself sprawled face down in the shallow water. Cursing at his own clumsiness, he tried to kneel but it took far more energy than usual to get back to his feet. As he turned towards his house the full brightness of the sun hit him; moaning in pain he quickly shut his eyes to block out the light. His head was pounding as he set off back towards his lanai, but he never made it to his destination – after a few steps his limbs began to jerk erratically and he was unable to control his movements before his body went rigid and he dropped to the sand. The seizure stopped after a minute or two, but he was no longer aware of anyone or anything and lay where he fell.

His return to consciousness was slow and confused, as he gradually became aware of pain in what felt like every muscle of his body. At least the sun had moved around in the sky and was no longer in his eyes. Groaning, he tried to roll over onto his front but felt like he was moving in quick sand and his limbs just wouldn't cooperate. His headache was back with a vengeance and he was struggling to focus his eyes. Steve could be described as many things, but being a quitter was certainly not one of them and so he gritted his teeth and forced himself to roll over. A wave of nausea came over him and he automatically resorted to combat breathing to ride through it; the controlled long breaths in and out helped him to focus and regain a level of control over his body. Slowly he came onto his knees and then was able to stand and shuffle back onto the lanai. Lowering himself carefully into a chair, he continued to control his breathing until he felt able to fully open his eyes and take stock of his surroundings.

" _What the hell happened?"_ he thought to himself as he subconsciously took a quick inventory of his body, a familiar process that he had been forced to do far too many times, _"no visible injuries, no new holes, no blood, all four limbs present and correct."_ Running his hands over his head and face, he looked to see any evidence of blood but his hands came away clean. It took him some time to think to locate his phone, but it was not in view. _"Come on Steve, pull yourself together,"_ he mentally chided himself as a voice that sounded suspiciously like his vocal partner chimed in with " _You complete Neanderthal animal, you can't even evade trouble literally in your own back yard!"_

Speaking aloud this time, he answered with, "Jesus, Danno. That must've been one helluva party . . ." trailing off as he chastised himself for holding an imagery conversation. It was bad enough having to deal with the opinionated detective in real life without starting to talk to him when he wasn't even there.

He shifted in discomfort in his seat as he became aware of the unpleasant cold feeling from his wet pants, no doubt a result of his little tumble down at the shoreline. It took a minute but with a sniff he worked out that it wasn't just the seawater that had made them wet _. "What the hell?"_ He sucked in a sharp breath and flushed in embarrassment as he came to the awful realization that he had soiled himself.

With a disgusted grunt, he pushed off the arms of the chair to stand and gingerly walked into his house through the glass doors that he fails to even notice had been left wide open. The breeze causes the sheers to flutter and the graceful movement of the fabric takes his attention for a few seconds before he shrugged off his temporary lack of focus and continued into his house. Sweeping his gaze over the dining room, he made a cursory pass of the living room before ending up in his kitchen. Sighing in relief, he located his phone on the counter where it had been left on charge.

His head still felt foggy, but he forced himself to assess his situation and the realization hits him like a freight train - his breathing sped up in panic as he recognized his symptoms. It had been a number of years ago on a FUBAR mission to some god-forsaken hellhole, but he remembers with sickening clarity feeling exactly like he does now. "Shit," he softly cursed as he painstakingly scrolled through his contacts until he got to his old CO, Captain Edward 'Eddie' Brown. He waited for the call to connect and steeled himself for the conversation ahead.

Taking a calming breath, he exhaled and then responded to the clipped greeting, "Sir, Steve McGarrett here," he waited for the customary polite enquiry about his health and was uncharacteristically tentative in his response "um, actually no Sir, I'm not alright. Requesting permission to meet ASAP. Can I meet you at the Branch Medical Clinic in Makalapa – I um, I think I need to be tested for Rohypnol ingestion . . . I could've been compromised," he took more calming breaths while listening to Captain Brown's instructions, ". . . understood, Sir . . . yes Roger that. Thank you, Sir."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Captain Brown lowered his phone back onto the cradle and could not hide his worry after the brief exchange, so much so that Senior Chief Petty Officer Iosua walked over from his desk to check on him. Perching on the edge of the Captain's desk he asked, "Trouble?"

"To be honest I couldn't really say yet, but I am very worried about the ramifications." Iosua raised his eyebrows, unable to contain his surprise. Edward Brown was the very definition of unflappable, known as 'Steady Eddie' amongst base personnel - although certainly not to his face. He was overdue to retire and would take with him a wealth of operational experience; he would have already hung up his cap but had been 'persuaded' to transfer to Pearl Harbor to help with the complex process of merging with Hickham Air Force Base to form Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickham (JBPHH). His calm demeanour and ability to cut through bureaucracy had proved invaluable, with the new joint facility in full swing now. If he was honest, Eddie had accepted the transfer offer quickly enough instead of retiring; the chance for a steady desk job on the island he now called home was not exactly a hard sell. His wife Eleanor, a kindly but formidable woman, had been delighted as she didn't think that the world of retirement was quite ready for her husband and so it was a win-win in Eddie's book.

Handing over a piece of paper to Iosua, he gave the order to get an enlisted sailor over to 2727 Piikoi Street with instructions to pick up Lt. Commander McGarrett and bring him to the Makalapa Gate on Base. Iosua took the paper with a nod of assent and went about his business whilst Eddie sighed in resignation and dialled the Governor's office, "This is Captain Brown from JBPHH, may I speak with Governor Jameson? Yes, I'll hold . . ."


	2. Back to base

**Chapter 2**

Steve shrugged off his clothes and bagged them in an unused trash bag, it was not quite an evidence bag but would do under the circumstances. He found a clean empty jar in his kitchen cupboard and collected a sample of urine and then proceeded to dress in his service khaki uniform. His normal brisk efficiency eluded him, these simple tasks taking far longer than usual. He was still getting dressed when he heard the knock on the door. Hating to be kept waiting himself, he made an extra effort to finish dressing and shortly afterwards was being driven to the base by a fresh-faced young woman. The effort of getting changed had drained Steve and he had neither the desire nor the energy to hold a conversation with his driver. They drove in silence until the car pulled up at Makalapa Gate at JBPHH. Captain Brown had called ahead, so after a quick ID check they were waved through and pulled up in the clinic's drop off zone where Eddie was waiting.

Nodding his thanks at the driver he addressed Steve, "Commander, I have Lieutenant Lee waiting for us inside," he took Steve's elbow and steered Steve into the building, smiling gratefully at the doctor as she efficiently led them into a private room.

She turned to Steve and addressed him directly, "I understand you may have been dosed with a benzodiazepine, let's run through the standard tests and see where we stand, shall we?" It wasn't really a question but Steve nodded and started to unbutton his shirt, his left leg jiggling restlessly as he sat. She took Steve's blood pressure and clamped his finger with a pulse oximeter and drew several vials of blood. Nodding at the glass jar she asked Steve when it was collected, "Do you think you could manage another sample for me now?" Steve took the offered sample collection pot into the small adjoining restroom. He blushed slightly as he came out and handed the pot over to the doctor. Lt. Lee caught his embarrassment and smiled wryly to herself, he was not the first big bad Navy SEAL to stare death in the face without so much as a flinch but ask for a simple bodily fluid sample and they didn't know where to put themselves. God help them all when she needed to perform a prostate exam. She quickly stowed the pot and continued with her examination of his heart and lung function all the while bombarding Steve with questions, pausing briefly between each symptom to give Steve time to reply, "Have you experienced a headache, muscle pain, numbness or tingling, restlessness . . ." at this she paused and noted his jiggling leg, "yes to that one," she muttered to herself, "sensitivity to light, confusion, seizures, hallucinations, loss of coordination . . ."

Steve answered each question to the best of his knowledge but was struggling to keep up with the quick fire questioning. The doctor caught Eddie's eye to check if he had also noticed Steve's slow responses. Eddie gave a slight nod of his head in silent reply and frowned with worry.

Finally, she concluded her exam and gave her medical opinion, "Okay, I'm not very happy with your blood pressure and respiration rate. Both are on the low side. Just from your symptoms alone I strongly suspect that have been dosed with a potent amount of a benzodiazepine, most likely Rohypnol. I'm going to keep you here for observation until we get the urine and blood tests back. We can do them in house and I've put a rush on them so it shouldn't be more than a few hours. Commander, do you remember anything that might help?"

Steve shook his head, "I'm sorry, Doctor but it's a complete blank," he paused and then asked, "do you think some memories might come back?"

She considered the question, pulling a face, "It's hard to tell, it can vary between individuals and is very much dependent on the dose of drug that you ingested and whether there were any other factors such as alcohol."

Steve thought about this, "There were empty beer bottles in my back yard, I might have been drinking," he sighed, "that might explain these after effects – maybe I wasn't meant to be so out of it." Steve risked a quick glance at Eddie, "Maybe they didn't actually give me that high a dose if they just wanted me to be compliant?"

Eddie frowned, "Maybe, let's see what results come back from the testing and then we can calculate what dose you were given-"

"But we need a timeframe of when I might have taken the roofies to know that, Sir," interrupted Steve.

The Captain gave him a hard stare, "Then let's start with what you do remember and go from there, Commander."


	3. Reflections

**Chapter 3**

Steve had been laid on the exam table for hours, feeling utterly miserable. He knows that the after effects from a high dose of the drug can be very dangerous, and even fatal, so supposes he has to be at least a bit happy that he is still alive. His blood pressure and respiration are nearly back to normal now, which has made his doctor pleased if nothing else. It seems that he is not likely to suddenly stop breathing anytime soon. _"That's a good thing,"_ he tells himself. He also managed to piece together his recent movements after 2 painstaking hours of questioning by Captain Brown. Steve could recall coming home from the Iolani Palace at about lunchtime the previous day, it stood out because it was so unusual to finish that early. The Five-0 Task Force was still recovering from the emotional trauma of Danny being exposed to sarin gas. Steve closed his eyes and sighed as he recalled his fear when Danny collapsed, _"Thank God for Jenna Kaye's previous experience with sarin gas."_ He knows that without her quick actions, Danny wouldn't be here right now. He allows himself a little smirk as he remembers Jenna's smartass comeback when he challenged her about no longer being attached to the squad car, that he himself had handcuffed her to in order to keep her out of harm's way. _"Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't there a car attached to you?"_ She had looked at her arm with the handcuffs and car door handle still attached and smirked, _"Oh, Weird."_ She was fitting right in with the little team of broken toys he had assembled in Hawaii. He allowed himself to bask a little in the warm feeling of ohana that he always gets when he thinks about the people that he has met and reconnected with since moving back to Oahu and starting Five-0. He has not had that feeling of home since he was shipped off without warning after his mother's death.

The rest of the team deserved a little downtime and with Danny out on medical leave he let Chin and Kono leave the office early and they were only too quick to say their goodbyes and get out of there. It was a Friday and so a long weekend was on the cards and they had certainly earned it, keeping a biological weapon from falling into the wrong hands.

Kono would be drifting on a surfboard wherever the surf was up, just waiting for the perfect wave to entice her to paddle out and ride it until it breaks. Steve had been impressed with the rookie and had spotted Kono's natural ability with a sniper rifle very quickly. He was coaching her with the help of a former Team guy who was now working as a private security consultant. Kono soaked up information like a sponge and Steve knew that it was only a matter of time before she was outshining him at the gun range.

Chin had left the office with the sole purpose of riding his Harley motorcycle to the North Shore for complete solitude, where he could just clear his mind and take the time to think. After the death of his beloved Auntie, the truth about who really took the money from the HPD asset forfeiture locker had come out and even IA had backed off. Steve knew it was just a matter of time before HPD realized the value of what they had so carelessly cast aside and made a tempting job offer to Chin, but hoped that Chin would choose to stay with Five-0. He appreciated Chin's calm, almost zen-like, approach more than he could say, not to mention Chin's past connection to his father. The older man liked to share stories with him about his dad which, although they were bittersweet, had Steve latching onto them like a drowning man holding the only lifebuoy. Recent revelations about how his mother had really died had put his father's actions in a whole new light and Steve bitterly regretted not making more effort to have his dad back in his life while he still had the chance.

A lot of things had changed with that fateful gun shot and Steve had not really allowed himself the time to grieve and process his father's death. That was partly what drove him to push himself so hard with the Task Force, but he appreciated that the other members of his team deserved to have a life outside the job - Danny's near-death experience had certainly brought that home in recent days. He really didn't know what to make of the cosy scene he stumbled upon in the hospital room – with Rachel asleep in Danny's arms. He felt like he had intruded on a very intimate moment and wondered if they were sleeping together. As much as he wanted Danny to be happy, this had the potential to be a big mess; he had his reservations about Rachel and really hoped that she didn't hurt his partner again. He felt strongly protective of Danny, knowing there was a deeply sensitive man behind the sarcastic bluster.

So, an unexpectedly early finish on a Friday had Steve enjoying a lazy afternoon at his house before the weekend. He had indulged in a leisurely swim from his private beach, allowing himself to just float and enjoy the warmer waters of the North Pacific Ocean. Before coming back to the islands, the last time he had been in the ocean had been in the much cooler waters of the Atlantic and then his only objective had been survival. He experienced a profound sense of peace in the vast waters of the Pacific, thinking that Danny didn't realize how close to the truth he was when he declared Steve 'half-man, half-fish'. Of course you didn't sign up to be a Navy SEAL without a reasonable affinity for water, but for Steve it was more than that. His love of the ocean was ingrained in him and something that he clung to after he was sent away from his beloved beach-front family home.

At least he still had Mary Ann. Her recent kidnapping had sent him into a blind panic and only Danny's solid presence had kept him from losing his mind, but it had also made him confront his feelings for his little sister and they had finally properly reconnected after so many years as virtual strangers. He knew he was at fault, he had made a conscious choice to all but sever his family ties in his anger at being sent so far from home. Mary at least had Aunt Deb to cling to, but Steve was left with no one and was forced to grow up and become self-sufficient almost overnight. The anger he had felt towards his father and the world in general for conspiring against him was immense and, if he was really honest, had never properly dissipated. It was sad to think that it was these tragic circumstances that had made him the man he was today - driven, relentless and utterly hell-bent on pursuing those who sought to destroy the American way of life.

After his relaxing swim, Steve laid out his fluffiest towel on one of the pair of weather-beaten beach chairs, planted deep into the sand next to the sea. The old Adirondack chairs had been chosen with his mother, she had insisted on dragging him away from the football game on TV to come to the store with her. He had tagged along, teenage angst oozing out of every pore but ended up taking his task very seriously – giving every chair in the store an extended comfort test. She had smiled, laughing that this was the only way she could be sure that the rest of the family would like what she had bought, _"Ah Stevie, I know if these chairs have been given the official 'Steve-approval', then your father is going to love them!"_ She had taken him for shave ice afterwards and 'innocently' fished for information about his latest girlfriend. He had been good at resisting hostile interrogation even then and taken great pleasure in not divulging anything too juicy, although he could remember dropping enough hints to tease his Mom – just to get a reaction. It had been their last 'Mom and Son' outing before she died, the chairs arriving about a week before the car 'accident' - which he now knew was no such thing. _"You were right Mom, Dad loved those chairs."_ He exhaled and let himself sink into the chair and sat facing the ocean, just soaking in the peace and quiet. He had taken the cunning precaution, even if he did say so himself, of setting up a cool box full of Longboards within easy reach of the chair and took his first bottle with a happy little sigh. If any of the team came over, then he was ready and willing to set up the grill and cook for everyone. Impromptu cook outs had become a regular event and something that he enjoyed. For all of Danny's teasing he was actually at ease in social settings and very much liked having lots of people and the sounds of their laughter filling his family home again. His ability to bring people together into a single cohesive unit had not gone unnoticed by his superiors and was partly why he attained the rank that he had at a relatively young age.

None of his newly-found ohana had made an appearance and Steve had been steadily working his way through the bottles of beer while the sun had been going about its business of setting in truly spectacular Hawaiian fashion. Steve marvelled at the hues of purples and oranges lighting up the sky in multicolored glory. And that was the last thing that he could remember.


	4. Unknown connections

**Chapter 4**

Eddie made his way back into the doctor's office, very pleased to hear that Steve's vitals had returned to normal. The test results were back and Steve had indeed been dosed with a large amount of Rohypnol which, when taking into account his blood alcohol level, had resulted in his severe reaction to the drug.

"Ah, Captain Brown," the doctor nodded to Eddie as he entered her office, "just in time for the results. I understand you wanted to know more about the drug concentrations used. Given the earliest time that the drug could have been ingested and working back from the concentrations we found in Commander McGarrett's latest urine sample it would appear that the drug dosage administered was at the higher end of the scale, high enough to have the clear intention of completely incapacitating the victim". Steve flinched at this, it went against all of his training to be reduced to playing the role of the victim. Lieutenant Lee caught his reaction and quickly amended her last statement, "My apologies, poor choice of words."

Steve accepted her apology with a small smile and added, "I am guessing that they didn't fully factor in the effect of the alcohol, I'm thinking that I may have drunk quite a few Longboards . . ." He gave a weak smile at the lieutenant's arched eyebrow - she knew exactly how many he had drunk from the blood alcohol results, "This might work in our favor, maybe I had such a bad reaction that they couldn't achieve their objectives?"

The doctor nodded at them both as she left the office, "I'll leave you two gentleman to discuss this further, please excuse me."

Both men thanked her and then silence fell over the room as they digested this latest piece of information. Eddie sucked in a breath before speaking, "Not that it is any consolation given the very nasty after effects that you suffered, but I think we can be assured that the intent was not to merely lower your inhibitions for the purpose of extracting classified information or manipulating you into doing something," he briefly shut his eyes before continuing, "with those sort of levels in your blood, there is no way that you would have been in any state to go along with anything – you would've been pretty out of it. I don't think there is any reason to believe that this is from a past op or indeed anything to do with your Naval connection."

Steve nodded in agreement and quickly checked that there was no one to overhear them, "It was the first thought that I had, as soon as I recognized my symptoms. All I could think of was Operation Strawberry Fields. Christ, what a monumental cock-up that was - they didn't do a very good job of making me compliant then, bastards damn near killed me instead. I don't know if I ever properly thanked you for hauling my unconscious ass out of there before I bought the farm or even worse, they managed to get something out of me that put my Team at risk." He paused for a second. "So what the hell was the purpose then? This was a risky play, whoever did this had to know my movements, disable my alarm system – I've upgraded it by the way after the last burglary, INFIL my home and spike my beer. Their intention clearly wasn't to physically harm me, as it's not like they didn't have the means and opportunity for that. I've made a lot of enemies during my time in the Navy, not to mention since setting up Five-0. This feels personal though and I get the feeling that we aren't going to find out the 'why' just yet. I'd put Wo Fat high up on the list for the 'who'."

Captain Brown contemplated Steve's words, "I think you're right, I can't help feeling that this nasty business with Victor Hesse, your mother's death, the Yakuza and Wo Fat are all connected in ways we haven't yet been able to work out." Steve nodded again.

"I appreciate being able to share all that with you Eddie, there aren't many people that I can trust with the intel. HPD definitely had a mole that had my father worried. Who knows how high this whole thing goes?"

"Anytime Steve, you know I wanted to have a much closer working relationship with Five-0, but there was pushback from the higher-ups about working with civilians," he paused at Steve's comical expression of outrage, "hell, I know _you'll_ never be a civilian Steve but you know how jumpy the Navy gets at sharing its resources and intel outside of the service," he chuckled darkly, "and sometimes even within it!" Eddie then remembered to tell Steve about his conversation with the Governor, "Oh, by the way you don't need to worry about Five-0. I had a word with Governor Jameson and informed her of urgent Naval business that required your full and immediate attention for a couple of days. I offloaded the paperwork onto my minions and had them assign you to a somewhat vague training exercise. The chit was being processed as I left the office. That should keep all this all on the DL for the time being."

Despite his anxiousness, this had Steve chuckling, "I like how your mind works Eddie and as a Reservist I'll even get paid for my trouble!"

Eddie was adept at reading Steve and was glad he had managed to lighten the mood, he knew how much the lack of knowing what had happened last night was killing Steve. A man he knew to actively seek the comfort of being in control of every situation in which he found himself had been at the mercy of someone for completely unknown reasons.

Keen to not let Steve slip back behind his walls Eddie continued chatting to Steve, reminiscing about past missions together when Steve had just been given his SEAL Team Command. Eddie had been in the chain of command above Steve and saw the potential in him but also realized the newly promoted officer needed some of the 'green' rubbing off and proceeded to do just that. His no-nonsense mentoring had saved Steve, and by extension his SEAL Team, on more than one occasion and set Steve up to become an outstanding Team leader. Between him and Joe White they had taken it upon themselves to act as mentors for Steve, in the absence of his father or any other significant family member.

Their friendship had outlasted their missions and Steve had been delighted when Eddie had been transferred to Oahu shortly after he himself had transferred into the Reserves. He was the only one that Steve could talk to about his guilt over losing his SEAL Team member and friend, Freddie Hart. The extreme pressure of active service turned teammates into brothers in arms, but Freddie had been more than that – not only Steve's closest friend but also a brother from another mother. In their own way they had each saved each other during BUD/S training and remaining very close after deployment. Steve still vividly remembered Kelly's heartbroken reaction to Freddie's death – made even more devastating by the fact that her unborn child would now never get to see her Daddy. Although not blaming Steve directly, she had lashed out in the moment and Steve had stood there and taken it, but it had only served to add to the guilt that he was already feeling. Kelly had since given birth to a healthy little girl but Steve had not yet plucked up the courage to visit, unsure of his welcome. He had raged against himself for such cowardice, knowing that Freddie would not have approved. However, he had resolved to do something to improve the situation and had started to put a little bit of money aside every month with the intention of letting it build into a college fund for Freddie's daughter. He had also begun tentative conversations with Eddie and his former training CO, Commander Joe White, to explore the possibility of bringing home Freddie's body via diplomatic channels. Freddie's family deserved to have a proper military funeral for their boy.

His relationship with Joe was complex; on the one hand he looked up to him as a substitute father figure and had appreciated his quiet support in the years following his mother's death. He knew that Joe had pulled some strings to get him out of trouble for stealing a car, and then on a number of occasions after that. But, on the other hand, he felt an overwhelming need to constantly prove himself to Joe; when he tried to analyze his feelings he knew that this pressure was entirely of his own making, but he couldn't stop himself striving to make Joe proud of him. Unfortunately this stopped Steve from sharing his darker thoughts with Joe, as he was terrified that Joe would think of him as weak. He felt far less inhibited with Eddie and had needed his support more than ever after Freddie's death and then his father's murder so soon afterwards.

Eleanor had adopted Steve like a stray puppy and regularly took it upon herself to feed him, declaring that he was far too thin and needed fattening up. She could hardly contain her glee when she learned about Steve's 'not-girlfriend' Lt. Catherine Rollins, a juicy little nugget of information that Eddie had inadvertently let slip one evening after too much wine. Steve tolerated her none too subtle attempts at match-making because truth be told he had missed the feeling of being part of a family and loved Eleanor like a mother. He also gained a brother through the Brown family, in their son Harry. After initially resisting a career in the Navy and having even briefly flirted with the idea of joining the Army, much to his father's horror, Harry had found his niche in the Navy; he excelled in Naval Intelligence and even occasionally worked on ops with Catherine, revelling in the opportunity to swap embarrassing stories about Steve. Steve vowed to return the favor and was currently trying to prise information out of Catherine about Harry's love life, but she was a tough nut to crack. Steve owed Joe big time for forcing him to man up and ask Catherine out on an official date after he had survived a catastrophic intelligence-gathering mission that had gone pear-shaped even before Steve had landed from his HALO jump. It had been the push he needed and had moved their relationship to the next level. He wanted more, but instinctively knew that now was not the right time. Catherine was determined to prove herself in a male-dominated environment and advance her promising Naval career and he first had to deal with a powerful enemy who seemed to have a very personal vendetta against his family.

Danny had once declared Steve's mind 'a very scary place', Steve half sobbed as he let his head drop into his hands, _"Oh Buddy, you don't know the half of it . . ."_


	5. The Navy just doesn't feel the same

**Chapter 5**

"When you get the all clear from Lieutenant Lee, I'd like your opinion on some disturbing intel that has been coming out of Afghanistan - some of the players will be well-known to you already. The Navy might as well get its money's worth this weekend – we mustn't be seen to be wasting tax payers money." Steve smirked at Eddie, grateful for the distraction. He made a sloppy attempt at standing to attention,

"Sir, yes Sir!"

Eddie rolled his eyes and replied dryly, "That's not how we do it in the Navy, McGarrett."

Steve had spent his entire adult life in the Navy and at some point it had turned into a substitute home for him. It was a strange paradox but he somehow felt at ease amongst the rigid rules and routines that most people would find stifling. Captain Brown duly arranged for him to join the briefing session in the command room at Pearl Harbor and his head was spinning from trying to take in the many strands of intel, gathered by Naval Intelligence over a period of several weeks. He noted how all the personnel worked together like a well-oiled machine, but there was something missing. There was no spark or snarky comments being thrown around - just quiet efficiency. For a minute he had a vision of a beehive, full of industrious worker bees all toiling away for the greater good of the hive. He blinked, shaking the random thoughts out of his head, annoyed at his lack of focus – maybe he was still suffering from the after effects of the drug. Realizing that someone was addressing him, he snapped to attention and got his head back in the game.

Steve sighed as he climbed into his bunk for the night, Eddie suggesting that it would be more efficient for him to stay in base accommodation for the weekend. Steve hadn't wanted to say anything but he didn't want to go home anyway, feeling that the sanctity of his home had been ruined yet again. On his bad days he can't help but give serious consideration to selling the place and having a fresh start. Then he remembers that it was his Grandad, his namesake, who built the house and it is about the only thing left of his family legacy. He imagines Danno chiming in with, _"Good luck finding a buyer once they find out someone was murdered there and the whole place got shot up to hell in an honest-to-God actual siege."_ As he relaxed and stretched out on the mattress, Steve reflected on the day. _"Definitely not the best start to my day"_ , he mused to himself, _"Why do I feel like this is only just the start of it . . ."_

Not wanting to dwell too much on who may have drugged him and why, his thoughts went back to the briefing, a situation in which he would normally feel at complete ease. It dawned on him that he had begun to rely on- and even enjoy the unorthodox methods employed by Five-0, complete with bickering, gentle teasing and laughter. His team member's differences were what made them so special and able to see beyond the obvious. In fact, he marvelled that they managed to pull together as a team at all, given how diverse they were in their backgrounds and beliefs. He never stopped to consider how much of that was down to his leadership. Although none of this had been planned, he had built himself a non-military task force and the team had become part of his extended ohana. He had to admit that Five-0 were making a real difference, just in the last few months alone they had saved a group of kidnapped college kids, recovered millions of dollars of stolen money, caught murderers and disrupted organized crime families as well as uncovering a plot involving biological weapons. The Navy was much bigger than a man called Steven McGarrett - missions hadn't suddenly ground to a halt because he was no longer in full time active service. He doubted that he would have had the same impact on the Navy as he had managed to have on the islands of Hawaii this past year.

In the early days of Five-0 Steve found himself reconsidering his decision on a daily basis. He was faced with barely disguised hostility from HPD, regular rants from Danny where he wasted no time in pointing out the many flaws and shortcomings of one Steven J McGarrett and the loneliness of living in the oppressive silence of his desecrated family home. Steve had doubted himself and cursed his rash decision to give it all up. He never ever made hasty decisions when it came to his career, every move meticulously planned after lengthy discussions with Joe White and his superiors. He knew he had burnt some bridges when he transferred to the reserves, some of the higher-ups not at all happy to be losing him after everything that they had invested into developing his career. He was aware that shortly before his mission to capture Anton Hesse there had been scuttlebutt about a promotion to full commander, and none of that happened without someone in your corner. And he, on a complete whim, had just thrown all that back in their faces. He really hoped that he never needed to go crawling back to the Navy, cap in hand, as he was not at all sure of his welcome.

Saying that, his circumstances were different now - at one time he was more than happy to be sent to all four corners of the globe at a moment's notice, positively relishing in the challenge of commanding an elite unit and completing missions that were entrusted to the very few. Had things not gone his way, he wouldn't have left behind a long line of devastated people to mourn him. Steve realized that these few short months back on the island had given him roots that would not be so easy to just pull up again. He had people he would miss, and he hoped would miss him back. He was even an honorary uncle now to a very special little girl.

Pushing his thoughts to one side he rolled over and was quickly asleep, the toll of the day pulling him under.

The rest of Steve's time on base was filled with meetings, briefings and dinners with key personnel. He was a little taken aback to find that he had become something of a local celebrity, with his superiors keen to hear more about the accomplishments of the Five-0 Task Force. With Captain Brown's support, he tentatively put the idea of closer cooperation out there and was surprised to find that he was not immediately shot down. Unable to reveal the full extent of Naval intelligence involvement in some of Five-0's cases without exposing Catherine, he had nevertheless done his best to highlight where Five-0 and the Navy could work together for the benefit of them both. Criminals were no longer solely the focus of either just military or civilian scrutiny, as evidenced by Anton and Victor Hesse and most recently - Wo Fat.

Early on Monday morning he left the base feeling energized, already running scenarios through his head. He sobered as he arrived home, immediately reminded of the most recent violation to happen there. He wondered if he should involve Five-0 and HPD and get the crime scene unit down to his house to search for evidence. He quickly dismissed this thought, instinctively knowing that the criminals he was dealing with were too careful to leave anything that would trace back to them. He also felt ashamed for allowing himself to be compromised and his cheeks flushed as he imagined the gossip at HPD about the 'great' Commander McGarrett being drugged in his own home. He was well aware that many officers were resentful towards the Task Force, and to add insult to injury its leader was not even from a law enforcement background. He had done nothing to help the situation and realized that perhaps it was time to build some bridges. He resolved to talk with Sgt. Duke Lukela as soon as possible and seek his opinion on how they could better integrate the two forces.

Steve wasn't in a rush to get to the Palace, he knew the Governor was aware of his whereabouts and he had already sent Chin a quick text to let him know that he was attending to Navy business and would be late in. His mobile phone would have alerted him if his presence was urgently required at a crime scene, but it remained resolutely silent. He took his time taking off his working uniform, pressing his pants and neatly returning each item to its corresponding covered hanger, except for his shirt which went into the laundry hamper. He polished his shoes and replaced them in their designated box. He had found from bitter experience that it paid to have all of his uniforms ready to grab and go.

He also took the time to do a much more thorough sweep of his house now that he was completely lucid. Nothing was out of place - no clues, no leads, just a big fat nothing. Kicking the door of his kitchen shut with a bad-tempered growl, he was more certain than ever that he was dealing with highly trained professionals.


	6. A picture is not always worth a thousand words

**Chapter 6**

Steve jumped down from his blue Chevy Silverado and made his way through the main entrance of Iolani Palace. Normally he would've just jogged straight up to the Five-0 offices but thought that now was as good a time as any to kick off his latest mission to improve relations with HPD and so he took a slight detour towards the officer on duty in the main entrance hall.

Glancing at his name badge, he addressed the young man, "Officer Keoki, anything to report?"

James Keoki looked up in surprise and only just resisted the urge to stand to attention. "Um, no Sir, it's all quiet so far this morning." Steve's brows creased in concentration as he looked at the officer's name badge again.

"Keoki . . . I know that name. Are you related to Ben Keoki?"

"Yes Sir, he's my uncle - been with HPD since before I was born, going on 40 years now. How do you know him?" Steve smiled at the memory,

"He used to live on the corner house of my block when I was growing up. He and my Dad were close. He was basically an uncle to me for a few years before he moved up nearer the North Shore," Steve paused a beat, "I was so sorry to hear about Chelsea. I couldn't get back for the funeral – I was deployed."

James sighed, "It was a really bad time, to have his wife leave him and then lose his only daughter to cancer . . ." Steve dipped his head in understanding, briefly touching the young officer's arm. James continued, "I didn't know Chelsea all that well, we only saw each other at family events, but it hits you hard when someone dies so young – God, she was only 27."

"We were pretty close when we were kids," Steve reminisced, "but sort of lost touch when she left Kukui High for another school after they moved. I hadn't seen her for years . . ." He trailed off, not wanting to spell out that he had lost touch with pretty much everyone when he was sent away to the Army and Navy Academy in California. Steve resolved to make the effort to seek out Ben and offer his condolences in person. He straightened up, "Anyway, what I came over to say was to keep an eye out for anything suspicious."

The young officer frowned, "Are you expecting trouble, Sir?"

Steve shook his head, "No, nothing specific, but just keep an eye out for anyone who looks out of place. Make a note of them in your log."

Officer Keoki nodded his understanding and Steve turned back towards the stairs and made his way up to the first floor.

He pushed open the large glass doors, entered the Five-0 offices and came face to face with his team. They had been gathered around the surface table in the middle of the room and had whipped around at his entrance. Danny was the first to move, he quickly advanced on Steve with a look of pure fury,

"How the hell could you do this to me you sonofabitch!" he shouted in Steve's face, "I thought you were my friend?"

Steve faltered, not sure what was going on. "I uhhh, I don't know what you mean, care to explain?" He backed up a step to put some space between him and his furious partner. He looked to Chin and Kono for help, "Would someone please tell me what's going on?"

Kono narrowed her eyes at Steve, looking angrier than he had ever seen her. "Really, Boss," she drawled out the word 'Boss' in a mocking tone. "I thought better of you, but obviously I was wrong." Chin made a move to stand closer to Kono and put a steadying hand on her shoulder as he spoke,

"I think you should leave." His tone was flat and controlled, but his eyes were cold as he stared at Steve.

Steve bristled at the open animosity in the room, going on the defensive. "I'm damned if I'm leaving _my_ office. Is anyone going to tell me what the hell it is that I'm supposed to have done?" Danny shoved a large brown envelope with full force into Steve's chest, which had Steve stumbling backwards as he fumbled to take hold of the offending item.

"Oh, I don't know," he said sarcastically, "maybe I'm upset 'cos you slept with Rachel, _my_ Rachel." He turned away for a beat then continued, his voice breaking, "Why? You can have anyone you want, you've got women throwing themselves at you. Why did it have to be Rachel?" Unable to say anything else he quickly left through the main doors, throwing a final comment out behind him, "Find yourself a new partner, 'cos we're done. I quit, effective immediately – consider this conversation my official resignation."

Steve slid the contents of the envelope out into his hand and sucked in a sharp breath as he looked at the glossy black and white photos it contained. The photos showed him and Rachel getting very intimate with each other in his bedroom, as he flicked through each one a heavy weight settled in the pit of his stomach and he felt physically sick. "Shit," he muttered under his breath as he became painfully aware of exactly why he had been drugged. He threw a quick glance at Chin and Kono, "No one wants to listen to my side then?" Kono snorted in disgust,

"You're seriously trying to justify sleeping with Danny's ex-wife, who he still loves - no matter how hard he tries to deny it. Oh yeah, Brah, I can't wait to hear this!" Steve looked to Chin for support, but found none. Chin didn't want to say something that he might regret and so he repeated his earlier suggestion,

"Like I said, I think you should leave."

Steve's face hardened and his eyes flashed in anger, "Yeah, maybe I should," and with that he stalked out of the office and made his way back down to this truck. Slamming it into drive, he sped out of the parking lot and floored it all the way to the main street. After aimlessly driving around for a few minutes, he abruptly pulled over in a small side street and just sat there in shock. Shaking slightly, he withdrew the photos from the envelope and looked at them properly. There was no doubting that it was him in the pictures, his tattoos were on full display and he could also make out a couple of the many scars that he had picked up over the years on classified missions. It was definitely his bedroom, the familiar furniture and décor clearly visible in the shots. He then got to thinking about Rachel – how the hell had they got her into bed with him? Or had the photos been faked? They certainly looked real enough. He knew where his next stop needed to be. Having a clear objective calmed him and he dropped the pictures onto the passenger seat, spun his truck around and drove towards his destination.


	7. Bare-faced cheek

**Chapter 7**

He remembered the location of the house in the exclusive area of Kuliouou from their stakeout to catch the Triathlon jewel thieves a few months prior. It had been fun to watch Danny and Rachel circle each other like prowling tigers, but he felt no amusement the second time he pulled up the Edwards Residence. He pressed the intercom on the gate and waited to be connected. "Yes, is that Mrs. Edwards? Commander Steve McGarrett, Ma'am. Would it be possible to speak to you and your husband?" Rachel immediately started to panic,

"Oh my God, has something happened to Danny?" Steve shook his head and then remembered that she couldn't see him. He spoke quickly to alleviate Rachel's mounting concern,

"No, nothing like that – but this is very delicate and I really have to speak to you in person." Rachel buzzed him through the gate and was nervously waiting at the front door by the time he had climbed down from his truck. "Is Mr. Edwards at home?" he asked, "it would be better to speak to you both together." Rachel nodded,

"Yes, he's leaving on a business trip later today and so was spending the morning with me before his flight." She turned away from Steve and raised her voice, "Stan? Can you come down, please? Commander McGarrett needs to speak to us about something."

Stan came down the stairs and looked rather surprised to see Steve in his home. "How can we help you, Commander?" Steve shuffled from one foot to the other and found himself uncharacteristically tongue-tied. He flushed a little before speaking,

"There's no easy way to say this, but some . . . uhhh . . . compromising photos have been given to Danny and the team. They, um, show myself and you, Mrs. Edwards, at my house . . . in my bedroom together." Steve didn't dare look at Rachel but heard her sharp intake of breath and he cringed before continuing, "I can't apologise enough for dragging you into my mess . . . I was, um, drugged with Rohypnol on Friday night and they must have staged the whole thing and manipulated the image to make it look like you in the photos." He looked up at Rachel at this point, "Well, at least I hope that the photos have been faked rather than the alternative. It definitely happened sometime between early evening on Friday and Saturday morning."

Stan moved to his wife and held her in his arms, offering comfort. "Oh my God, Rachel - are you alright?" She didn't move, looking totally shell-shocked. After a moment she recovered her composure, her clipped British accent even more apparent,

"Yes, yes of course . . . I was here Friday night," she stopped to think, "but I was on my own. Stan was in Vegas attending to some business and Grace spent the weekend with Daniel, he wanted to spend some time with her when he was discharged from hospital". She looked fearfully at Steve, "Surely I would know if I had been drugged?"

Steve replied, "Not necessarily, sometimes people don't realize-" Rachel interrupted him and held out her hand towards Steve,

"Let me see the photos, maybe I can spot something that will help." Stan laid his hand on her raised arm,

"You don't have to do this, Rachel."

Rachel's jaw clenched as she waved him off, "Yes, I do. Commander, the photos if you please." Steve handed them over and looked down at his feet as Rachel carefully examined each one. She had reached the third picture when she shouted out in triumph, "Ha! Look at that, this isn't me!"

Steve eyes shot up at Rachel's shout, "How can you be so sure?" Rachel smiled with satisfaction as she pointed to the bare ass of the woman in the photo,

"Because Commander, the little tramp who is all over you in this shot doesn't have a tattoo on her right cheek. The one on her bottom, not her face, just in case you were wondering."

Steve's eyes widened in surprise, "You have ink?" he asked incredulously. Rachel stared him down for a minute,

"What? You think you're the only one around here with a tattoo," she paused, "although to be fair, I was rather tipsy when I got that after one of Stan's very long and very boring business lunches." Stan pulled a face and shrugged his shoulders in apology, he knew that some of these meetings were tedious and was grateful that Rachel put up with them for the sake of his business. She suddenly lost her smirk, "So, I take it that Daniel has seen these photographs then?"

Steve nodded, "Yes. He clearly believed them to be real. I haven't heard from him since he quit Five-0 this morning". Stan looked shocked,

"He quit? But he loves it at Five-0 – he was happy enough to even start being almost civil to me!" Despite the mood Rachel cracked a quick smile at Stan's comment and added,

"Yes, he was so bitter when he was at HPD before you recruited him for the Task Force. I've seen such a change in him these last few months, I can tell that he's in a much better place now." Steve briefly had a vision of Rachel and Danny lying in each other's arms at the hospital and wondered just how close they had gotten.

He cleared his throat, "Ahem, well I'm going to try and get this mess sorted out ASAP." He looked at the married couple, "I apologize again for getting you involved in this, recent events lead me to believe that someone from my family's past is trying to discredit me." He pondered for a minute, thinking aloud, "Maybe that's their end game? They are trying to split up Five-0 and get me isolated?" He stopped talking at that point, not wanting to say too much. Addressing Stan he spoke again, "I hope this doesn't cause you and your wife issues, I would hate to be the cause of any problems."

Stan shook his head and pulled Rachel closer, "It'll take more than some fake photos," he declared, "Rachel would never do anything like that!"

Steve didn't miss the brief look of guilt flash across Rachel's face before she carefully schooled her features and turned to her husband, "Oh Stan, I know I can always count on you."

"Damn straight." Stan moved to shake Steve's hand and escorted him to the door, "I hope you get to the bottom of this, Commander."

Steve gave Stan a firm military handshake as he left the house, "Try and make Danny listen to reason if he contacts you . . ." he broke off with a wry smile, "um, yeah. . . good luck with that." Stan gave him an understanding look and then went back into the house to his wife.

"Are you sure you're alright, my love? I can cancel this trip if you want me to?" Rachel smiled at him and gave a quick shake of her head,

"Please don't do that, Darling, I know how important your meeting in Vegas is for the business." Stan looked a bit guilty.

"Maybe I should put my family first now and again," he sighed, "I didn't want to say before, but I have been getting the feeling that things are not quite right between us. You seem a little distant."

Rachel gestured for him to follow her into the sitting room, "I think it's time we had a proper talk."

Rachel knew that she had been playing with fire, she couldn't put it into words but Danny had her acting like a love-sick teenager, his recent near-death experience at the hospital rekindling some of her feelings for her ex-husband. When Danny loved someone, he did it with all of his heart – with a conviction that had sometimes scared her when they were married. She had used the excuse of his job being too dangerous and while that was a big part of it, there was more to her decision to leave him. She couldn't cope with the intensity of being married to Danny, as the extreme love had also come with other less desirable emotions. They were both highly strung and so simple disagreements had often morphed into screaming matches, ones to which their little daughter had been a witness, and that was not acceptable for any of them. They seemed to bring out the best and the worst in each other and Rachel had been the first to accept that something had to give. Danny had been desperate to save his marriage, but couldn't make the changes that Rachel was demanding and Rachel couldn't be the person that he needed her to be either. She also didn't like being a lowly cop's wife and wanted more. When Rachel had left, it was the hardest decision that she had ever had to make. Stan had been the calming influence that she had needed and while her love for him would never match what she had felt for Danny, she loved Stan all the same. He was a decent man and most certainly didn't deserve to be second best. She turned to her husband and poured her heart out to him. His jaw had stiffened when she tried to explain her feelings for Danny,

"Have you slept with him?" Rachel vehemently shook her head,

"No, we just talked – but it felt comfortable and it so easily could have led to more . . ." Rachel sobbed into her hands but then pulled herself together, "I will always have feelings for him, he is part of my past and Grace is part of us both," she grasped Stan's hands in her own, "but we were not meant to be together – it didn't work the first time we tried and it would fail each and every time. I love you Stan, the life that we have together – you and Grace are my family now."

Stan was an intelligent man, careful in business and with his life in general. He deliberated over what he had heard before replying, "I can't feel jealous of something that you used to feel," he said, "but I need you to be all in this marriage with me if it's going to work." He stopped speaking and looked at his wife, "Tell me that you are 100% with me!" Rachel nodded, grateful beyond words for Stan's steady presence,

"Always . . . you have been away so much that we haven't really talked, but how do you feel about becoming a Daddy." Stan's head shot around,

"You're pregnant!"

Rachel laughed and gave Stan her 'come-hither' look, "Not yet, but how about we do something about that right now?"


	8. A broken partnership

**Chapter 8**

As Steve drove away, he called Eddie using the Silverado's Bluetooth, "Eddie, things have developed since we last spoke, any chance we could meet?" He listened to the reply, "Yep, that works for me. See you in 30." Steve continued his journey and peeled off the Kamehameha Highway when he was near his destination. He parked the truck and walked along Arizona Memorial Drive to the restaurant. It was set in a stunning location with views of the ocean, but Steve was too distracted to pay it any attention.

Captain Brown was already sat in a booth and looked up to greet Steve, "I take it the shit has hit the proverbial fan then?"

Steve snorted as he took his seat opposite Eddie, "You could say that." He shook his head sadly and proceeded to recount the day's events to Eddie, a stricken look on his face as he realized that this was not over by a long shot. "What the hell has happened in my family's past that would warrant all this? It's definitely personal." He sighed, "You remember me telling you about Wo Fat's friendly little 'chat' with me in the Chinese restaurant when I was waiting for Jenna?" Eddie nodded and let Steve continue. "Well, he warned me then not to look too deeply into my family's past as I might not like what I find." Steve thought about Wo Fat's menacing threat and frowned, "Maybe he's right - I might not like it, whatever it is."

Eddie pondered this new information for a little while before speaking, "Damn it, what a god-awful mess - this psychopath is dragging your team and their families into his little vendetta now." He glanced at Steve, "How are you holding up, Son? It must have been a shock to have your team turn on you like that . . ." Steve stared down at the table, not trusting himself to speak. After a few deep breaths he looked back up at Eddie,

"It hurt. Really hurt. They didn't give me a chance to defend myself. I thought we were more than teammates - how could they even think that I would do something like that? What sort of a man do they take me for?" Steve had raised his voice and he was suddenly aware of the young couple in the booth opposite staring at him. He composed himself and lowered his voice, "The work we do, the trust we place in each other. What do you do when that's gone? I can't work with people who don't trust me implicitly. I've seen it happen on missions, a moment's hesitation and it's all gone to hell in a handbasket and someone's lying in a pool of their own blood before you know it." He stopped for a moment, "Do you know what makes it worse?" Eddie just shook his head, recognizing it was a rhetorical question. "Danny did everything in his power to prove that his former partner in HPD wasn't on the take. All the evidence pointed to him, but Danny just 'knew' that he was innocent. Why couldn't he give me the same consideration?" Steve was on a roll now, "And Chin. The entire police force believed he stole money from the evidence locker. Before I recruited him into the Task Force I asked him if he took the money and took him at his word when he said 'No'. . . how can they think that I'm the sort of sleazy bastard who would betray his own partner and sleep with another man's wife?"

Eddie cleared his throat before speaking, finding it hard to see Steve so devastated, "Let's focus on the impact this is going to have on the Task Force. Were you in the middle of investigating something and that person doesn't want you poking around?" Steve frowned as he mentally recapped Five-0's recent cases.

"No, I don't think so. Sang Min turned himself in and so isn't out there looking to make trouble. All our cases were wrapped, we haven't taken on anything since the sarin gas poisoning." His brow creased in concentration as he tried to recall anything that might be relevant. "Oh, hang on . . . what about the evidence that keeps turning up from Dad's Champ box? Maybe it is something to do with that? Is Wo Fat just toying with me, or is someone leaking the information to me without him knowing?"

"It could be that," the other man considered, "maybe he's found out that you have some of the evidence back and it's got him worried. Worried enough to create a diversion to stop you from finding something you shouldn't? I think someone has access to the evidence and is trying to help you. They clearly can't just return it all at once-"

"Yes," interrupted Steve, "wherever it is stashed, it must be obvious if they take too much at once. I think this person is on my side but is too scared to come forward."

Eddie agreed, "Wo Fat seems to have everyone running scared." He paused and a sinister smile came on his face. "I think it's about time we turned the tables - don't you, Commander?"

Steve leaned forward, his arms resting on the table, "Copy that, Captain. He's already taken too much from my family and I'll be damned if I'm gonna let him dictate my life for the next god-knows how many years." Steve's face was a hard mask, the stone-cold special operator on full display, "He really shouldn't have brought my ohana into this, it's high time I changed the game to my rules - let's see how he likes being the hunted one . . ."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Danny had made his way to the lookout, a place he had found by accident when he first arrived on the island, struggling to adjust to the move and raging against the injustice of it all. It was a beautiful spot, tranquil and overlooking the sea, high above the rocks below. The breeze was messing up his hair and he automatically smoothed it back into place. As he perched on the wall, Danny realized that he hadn't been here in a while – he hadn't needed to. He thought over the last few months, from when his life had been hijacked by the force of nature that is one Steven J McGarrett. Without him really noticing he had gradually eased into island life, although nothing would convince him that pineapple should be allowed anywhere near a pizza. Where once he had missed Jersey so much that it was almost painful, he now only occasionally thought of 'home' and when he mentioned his beloved home State it was more to get a rise out of his partner than for any other reason. He took great delight in winding up his uptight partner, relishing the spirited verbal banter that gave him the opportunity to let loose with his Jersey attitude. Steve had grown to be his best friend on Oahu and it was their close friendship that was making this whole sorry situation that much worse.

He couldn't believe it when he had taken the photos out of the mysterious brown envelope that had been left on his car windshield. At first he had thought it might be more evidence from the Champ box and whoever was leaving them for Steve had decided to bring him into their little game. With that in mind, he had very gingerly opened the envelope, cautious of the contents. The images had burned into his brain - his best friend and Rachel together in Steve's bed. Each photo was worse than the one before and he had let them slip out of his hands as he struggled to catch his breath. The rest of the morning had been a blur, somehow he had found himself at Five-0 HQ and had just sat at his desk in a daze.

Kono had been concerned when he had not responded to her cheery greeting and called Chin over to Danny's office. Together the cousins had patiently prised the whole story out of Danny and had reacted with shock and horror to the X-rated pictures. Chin had immediately recognized Steve's bedroom, as he had been in the room on a number of occasions. He had then carefully examined each photo using a magnifying glass, but had not seen anything that would make him think that they were not genuine, such as shadowing in the wrong place or a mismatch between the head and the body of the subjects in the photos. They were all clustered around the surface table, examining the photos together, when Steve had come striding into the office like nothing was wrong. And then it had all gone to shit.

Now that the initial shock was wearing off, Danny was becoming more rational, _"Goddamnit,"_ he cursed to himself - he was now unemployed and had effectively estranged himself from his best friend. He pondered that for a moment, _"Best friend my ass . . . some bloody friend he is"_. How could Steve not have known that Rachel was strictly off-limits? Danny got to thinking about his ex-wife – after such a long time of having nothing but animosity between them, it had been a welcome surprise when Rachel had started to be more civil with him. Texts had turned into phone calls and they had been speaking for longer ever since he had been forced to beg Rachel for the use of her house for a stakeout. When his brother Mattie showed up out of the blue, it had almost been like old times – with them both slipping back into comfortable conversation at dinner, catching each other's eyes and holding their gaze for just a beat too long. Then the bottom had dropped out of his world as he discovered that Matt, the caring brother who had stopped him from losing himself after the divorce, was a fraudulent thief and in league with some seriously unsavoury people. And it was Rachel to whom he had turned in his hour of need when he had been forced to watch his brother leave the island on a private jet. At the hospital, she had been so worried about him and her visit had ended with her fast asleep in his arms. As Rachel lay there, he had looked down at her and was forced to admit that he was still in love with his ex-wife. They hadn't really had the opportunity to speak properly since that night, but he could feel that something had changed for both of them and he was daring to entertain thoughts of a second chance with Rachel.

His lips thinned as he thought of Rachel – how could she have cheated on him with his own partner? He didn't even give Stan a second thought in all of this, after all he was the one who had wooed Rachel away from him with his fancy cars and big houses – offering Rachel a lifestyle that he could never hope to compete with on his paltry cop's salary. It was typical, just when things were starting to go his way Steve had to come along and ruin everything. The vivid images of them in bed together invaded his thoughts and instantly ruined the calmer feeling which had been developing. Danny abruptly got up and stomped back to his silver Chevrolet Camaro, slamming it into gear and wheel-spinning out of the rest area.


	9. The Governor's secrets

**Chapter 9**

Steve and Eddie had parted ways after their meal and Steve debated whether or not to return to Iolani Palace. He decided against it, his feelings about the earlier interaction with his team still too raw. Making a snap decision, he scrolled through his phone and dialled the number for Governor Jameson's private cell, "Governor, I was wondering if you had some time later today. I was hoping to speak with you regarding Five-0?" Pat Jameson was surprised by Steve's request, she couldn't remember him ever calling unless it was directly related to an active case or to reinforce his jurisdiction when dealing with Federal Agencies, more often than not the FBI. She smirked a little, amused by the thought of the looks on the faces of the hapless agents when they found themselves suddenly talking to the Governor of the State of Hawaii.

"Yes of course. Actually you've caught me at a good time – I'll be in my office at Hale Kia Aina all afternoon." She listened to Steve's reply and smiled at Steve's habit of using military time, smirking as she deliberately used civilian time in her reply, "Yes, 3 o'clock works for me. See you then, Commander."

After ending the call Pat tried to guess what the head of Five-0 might want to discuss. As far as she was aware there were no current cases and, thankfully, Detective Williams had recovered well from his close brush with death. She had been on edge ever since the recent revelations regarding the full scale of Hiro Noshimuri's criminal activities, worried about how the blowback might affect her own political career. He was a major supporter of her campaign and someone whom she had considered to be a dear friend; things were not always so black and white, the shades of gray becoming ever more apparent the longer she had been a politician. As the highest publically-elected official in the State, she had the people of Hawaii to answer to and they wanted lower crime rates, more jobs and a better standard of living. How she went about delivering all of that was really not their concern and over the years Pat had forged strategic alliances with key businessmen and women who did not always stick to the highest moral code. She huffed in frustration, thinking, _"Were people so naive to think that you could attain that level of money and status without occasionally skirting the fringes of legality – and so what if they did, it didn't mean that some good couldn't still come of it."_

She had grown very fond of John McGarrett over the years and seen firsthand how his wife's death still haunted him. Yet, he had never confided in her or anyone else about how his wife had really died – letting everyone believe it to be a tragic accident. One thing he had shared with her was how hard it had been to send his children away to the mainland, but he said that his job was dangerous and he couldn't risk losing them too. The sad thing was that he lost them anyway, as their bitterness at being shipped off like unwanted parcels created a rift that was never healed. That was partly why she had made the offer of the Task Force to his son, it was her way of making it right and bringing to justice the man who had killed her friend in his own home. It had been a good decision, Five-0 had made tremendous progress in just a few short months and their high profile successes certainly hadn't hurt her re-election campaign. Steve and his team had also allowed her to keep her desperate promise to Michael and Sarah Reeves, the U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines and his wife, to get their daughter back home safely.

But these latest developments had her seriously worried; she now knew that the death of John's wife had been no accident and was Hiro's brother, Kouji Noshimuri, really the one responsible for planting the car bomb? And who had killed him – surely it wasn't a coincidence that Kouji was also killed in a car 'accident'? Would Hiro go as far as to have his own brother killed just to stop the truth from coming out? Pat was no fool and knew full well that coincidences like these took a lot of planning.

She could see now how Hiro had steadily manipulated her until he had a politician in his pocket, a 'get out of jail free card' if you will. One of the sweeping powers of the Governor of the State of Hawaii is the power to grant pardons, she grimaced as she wondered just how long it would be until she was required to pull that party favor out of the bag for the head of the Yakuza. She strode over to her antique writing desk and unlocked the top drawer, pulling it open to reveal its contents. Hiro had passed the strange assortment of items onto her for 'safe keeping'. She hadn't connected the dots right away but, after a conversation with Steve in his office a couple of months ago, she now realized that these were the contents of John's toolbox – contents so important that it had been worth attacking the Commander in his own home and kidnapping Mary. The bastard had made her complicit in his criminal activity and as much as she just wanted to burn it all, she didn't dare dispose of the items just yet.

She was pulled from her thoughts by a knock on her door and she hastily shut and locked the drawer before calling out, "Come in." Her assistant entered, followed by Steve,

"Governor, Commander McGarrett for his 3 p.m. appointment." Pat smiled at the young intern in thanks and addressed Steve directly,

"Steve, how can I help you?" Once the intern had left the room and quietly clicked the door shut behind her, Steve took the offered seat and sat grimly for a minute before speaking,

"Thank you for this meeting Governor, I'm afraid there have been some developments involving myself and Five-0 and it is not good news."

Pat sat back in her chair as Steve provided his typical concise but detailed update of all of the events that had occurred since last Friday. He also told her everything he knew about a man called Wo Fat, an international arms dealer with deep ties to the Yakuza, "We believe that Wo Fat gave the order to have Kouji killed," he looked at Pat, "can you imagine the power he has over Hiro to make him give up his brother like that?" Steve took a deep breath before his next words, "I have very good reason to believe that Wo Fat ordered my father's murder." At this, Pat gasped in horror,

"But that was Victor Hesse, trying to save his brother!" Steve shook his head,

"No, Ma'am. While he was most certainly the trigger man, the man who gave the order was Wo Fat. Jenna Kaye has been analyzing evidence that show that the Hesse brothers and the Yakuza were working _for_ Wo Fat and acting on _his_ orders."

Pat picked up a glass of water and took a sip of her drink with a shaking hand, she was starting to realize just how deep she had been dragged into this whole mess. "But why, Steve?"

The SEAL stood up, pacing around the room as he talked, "Honestly, at this point I just don't know. But what I _do_ know is that Wo Fat has a personal vendetta against my family. It is possible that he also had something to do with my mother's murder. Now he is trying to break up Five-0 or discredit me, maybe both."

Governor Jameson hunched over, her head in her hands as she tried to process everything that she had heard. She knew that she had to come clean with Steve, things had gone far enough. Panic caused her to start to hyperventilate and Steve rushed to her side,

"Governor, just breathe with me. In for 1, 2, 3, 4 . . . hold . . . out for 1, 2, 3, 4 . . ." he continued to repeat the mantra, all the while holding her hands firmly in his and maintaining eye contact. "That's better, just take a moment . . ."

Once she had sufficiently recovered Pat started to speak, "Steve, you have to believe me – I had no idea that this man was involved in John's death." Steve's eyes widened and he dropped the Governor's hands like hot potatoes,

"What are you saying?!"

Pat started to cry as she tried to explain to Steve how she had been manipulated by Noshimuri and hadn't known that he was the head of the Yakuza until Steve's recent revelation. "Wo Fat was here, in this office with me and your father," Steve looked stunned at this news and gestured for her to continue, "I was introduced to Wo Fat by Hiro at a business lunch and he claimed to have information that could help John's investigation . . ." She broke off in horror, "Oh my God, it was me who led Wo Fat to your father!"

Steve was stony-faced as he asked, "What happened in this meeting?" Pat took a minute to regain her composure and then continued,

"John wanted to know about the code name 'Shelburne'. He knew it was important but didn't know how."

Steve prompted the Governor, "And did Wo Fat know anything?"

She shook her head, "No, he asked John if he knew if it related to a person or a place but John had nothing other than the name Shelburne. He said he thought it was something to do with the CIA, maybe even the code name for an agent or a mission but didn't know any more than that. Wo Fat told him that he had connections in the CIA and would discretely make inquiries and get back to him." She glanced at her antique writing bureau and Steve followed her gaze. He made the connection just as Pat placed the key for the drawer in his hand, "Hiro made me take the contents of your father's toolbox – I had no idea what it all was until recently." She stood up and took hold of Steve's arm, "Take it and work out what the hell this son of a bitch wants with it . . . and then make him pay."

She straightened up and faced Steve, a resolute expression on her face, "I'm truly sorry for my part in all of this Steve, please believe me when I say that your father was a dear friend," she looked up and briefly closed her eyes, "I've compromised this office and I refuse to let it go any further. I will be tendering my resignation tomorrow. If I'm no longer the Governor of the State of Hawaii, then their leverage over me means nothing!"


	10. What's in the box?

**Chapter 10**

Steve left the Governor's mansion in a state of shock, hugging the box of evidence tightly to his chest. As he was going down the steps he bumped into the Governor's Liaison, Laura Hills. They both started to apologize and then Laura gasped when she saw the contents of the box, "Where did you get all that?" Steve creased his brows into a frown,

"Laura, what do you know about this?" She looked around fearfully before pulling Steve around the corner and whispered,

"We can't talk here, I don't know who's watching."

Steve set down the box on the ground and took Laura by both arms, "Just breathe, it's okay. Governor Jameson gave it to me – she had everything from my father's toolbox locked up in the desk in her office. Laura, are you the one who has been returning the items to me every Wednesday?"

Laura nodded at Steve, "Yes, the Governor has a standing appointment with the Chief of Police and it gives me time to sneak into her office and take a little bit at a time. I would have given you more, but couldn't be too obvious." She grimaced, "Commander McGarrett, I think she's in up to her neck – what do we do, she's the bloody Governor for God's sake?!" Laura was almost wailing at this point.

Steve was quick to reassure the worried Governor's aide, "Laura, really - it's gonna be alright. I have just left the Governor's office now. She admitted everything, gave me back my father's things and is going to resign from office tomorrow . . . I think she's a victim in this just like my father – both of them were taken in by a man called Wo Fat." Steve frowned as he considered the implications for Laura, "I'm going to put you into protective custody, just until we can get this business with Wo Fat resolved." He didn't expand on exactly what he meant by 'resolved', but Laura noted from his tone it would be nothing good.

Laura nodded gratefully and followed Steve to his Silverado. As they set off, he dialled Chin and cut off anything that the man had been about to say, "Chin, I'm coming to the Palace with Laura Hills. I have reason to believe that she is in imminent danger and need you to organise protective custody . . . don't go through HPD, keep this strictly need to know." With that, he cut the call and looked over to Laura, "I'm sorry that helping me has put you in danger, but Chin will keep you safe," despite the dire circumstances he smirked slightly, "maybe it will give you two the chance to have a chat about your rather obvious attraction to one another." Laura blushed and she dropped her gaze,

"I, um, I don't know what you mean." Steve chuckled,

"Yeah, you keep telling yourself that."

When Steve brought Laura up to Five-0 HQ there was a distinct frostiness between him and the remaining members of his team but he pushed that aside for the time being, completely focused on his current objective of securing the safety of Laura Hills. He was very grateful to the lady, she had risked a lot to try and help him and he was determined that the Yakuza and Wo Fat would not be adding Laura to their long list of victims. Chin had already arranged a safe house, completely unknown to HPD, and had been careful to avoid leaving an electronic trail of any sort.

Before he left, Steve had addressed him, "Chin, I'll need you back here once Laura has been secured and you have organised someone to stay with her." The other man just nodded but didn't say anything in reply as he took Laura's arm and guided her out of the Palace via a back entrance. He had taken the precaution of using a non-descript car, provided by one of his many cousins, and they made their way to the secure location without incident. As they drove Laura had updated Chin on the latest developments with the Governor and how she had been the one returning the evidence from John McGarrett's toolbox to Steve. Laura looked curiously over to Chin and pondered whether to say anything. In the end, she couldn't help herself,

"Uh Chin, forgive me for prying but is everything okay between you and Commander McGarrett?" She noticed Chin stiffen slightly and knew immediately that she had not just been imagining the tense atmosphere in the office, "I'm sorry, it's none of my business."

Chin took a deep breath, "No, it's fine - you're right. We received disturbing evidence this morning that implicates Steve in something and Danny quit as a result." Laura pursed her lips thinking about what Chin had just said,

"The timing is very suspicious, what with everything that has been going on, don't you think? The Commander thinks that someone is trying create a distraction to stop him looking into the evidence that I was sending him from his toolbox." Chin digested this for a bit before cursing aloud,

"Goddamnit, you're right." He had a sinking feeling in his stomach, "I think we've just been played and I fell for it hook, line and sinker." Admonishing his lack of objectivity, Chin realized that he had allowed the emotions of the moment to override his normal measured response. Cringing, he remembered how Steve had wanted to explain but had been immediately shot down. Since when did he not give his boss the benefit of the doubt? And after everything Steve had done for him? Cursing himself, he resolved to try and rectify the situation as soon as he got back to the office.

Laura could see the myriad of emotions flit across his face and smiled at him tentatively as she took his hand in hers, "It's okay Chin, everything's going to work out." He gave her a rueful smile back and kept driving, hoping that she was right.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Danny finally plucked up the courage to call Rachel and was relieved when she picked up just before the answerphone kicked in, "Rachel, I really need to talk to you – can we meet?"

Rachel scowled, still hurt that Danny had been so quick to believe that she was sleeping with the Commander, "I really don't think that's a good idea, Daniel. After all, you clearly believe that I am the sort of brazen hussy who would sleep with your partner." Danny was shocked that she was aware of the situation,

"You know about it already?" He stopped to think, "Oh no . . . have you seen the photos as well?" Rachel gripped the phone a little tighter as she replied,

"Oh yes . . . and very arty they are too. Only it's not me in the photos." Danny nearly dropped his phone in relief,

"It's not?! Oh thank God for that!"

"No, I can assure you that it's not - but it doesn't alter the fact that you clearly thought that this is something of which I would be capable," she paused as anger bubbled up inside her, "doesn't say a lot about how we view each other, wouldn't you agree?"

Danny struggled to think of anything to say to that, "Look Rachel, please don't do anything hasty. I was hoping we could meet up− "

Rachel abruptly cut him off, "No Daniel. No more 'meeting up'. It's not good for either of us. I'm married to Stan and want to stay that way, this was a . . . mistake and I'm sorry because I'm as much to blame for the situation in which we are finding ourselves," she gave a little sob, "I think it's best if we revert to texting when making arrangements for Grace. Goodbye Daniel."

Danny flinched at the sudden dial tone as his ex-wife disconnected the call and looked at his phone in disbelief, no wanting to acknowledge that there was no 'him and Rachel' and never would be. He blinked back the tears as he felt the same sense of abandonment as he had when Matt turned around and continued up the steps of the private plane before jetting out of his life.


	11. Making it right

**Chapter 11**

Steve had holed himself up in office for the rest of the day, needing a quiet place to analyze all the information and strategize his next move – he knew that he was up against an organized and formidable opponent, one which would require Steve to draw upon every ounce of his Naval Intelligence expertise if he was to prevail. _"See partner, I don't always rush in on a hope and a prayer,"_ he thought to himself and then sobered when he remembered that he didn't have a partner anymore. He placed a number of calls to his contacts in the Navy and CIA, grateful that his previous involvement in a number of Black Ops had opened many doors for him. He resolved to call Joe White later that night; his mentor had been very close to his Dad at the time of his mother's murder and if anyone could shed some light on the reasons behind Wo Fat's vengeful beef with his family then it was Joe. His last call had been to Eddie, Steve wanting to run his plans past the man before he committed to anything.

When Chin arrived back at the Palace later that evening, he first made his way into Kono's office. Kono had been sat in there all afternoon, trying to complete paperwork but failing miserably. She felt lost and was sorely in need of the steady presence of her level-headed cousin. She looked up at his arrival, "Howzit Chin! Did you get Laura settled in at the safe house?" She knew that Chin liked the pretty Governor's aide and that this situation would have him very worried about her safety.

Chin smiled at her, sensing her unhappiness, his natural protective streak for his younger cousin kicking in, "Yeah," he smirked, "good job we have so many cousins who owe us a favor." He took a seat on the corner of Kono's desk. "How are you holding up, Kono? Been a bit of a heavy day, huh?"

She snorted at the understatement, "You got that right, Cuz . . . where do we go from here?" Chin rested his hand on her shoulder,

"Well, my next job involves me apologizing to my boss in the hope that we can salvage our relationship." He then updated Kono with everything that he had been told and watched as she too was faced with the awful realization that there was much more to this than they had first thought. She stood up purposefully,

"I think that's my next job too. I'll come with you."

Steve looked up from his desk to see Chin and Kono standing sheepishly in the doorway of his office. He knew without either of them saying anything that they had come to the conclusion that the old adage 'a picture is worth a thousand words' was not always the case. With a sigh, he leaned back in his chair and chose his next words very carefully, "Can you tell me why you didn't feel the need to at least afford me the courtesy of explaining myself?" Chin thought about the question before he responded,

"I let my emotions cloud my judgment and I jumped to conclusions, it was unacceptable and for that I'm truly sorry, Steve. I should have trusted you." Kono nodded in agreement,

"I was so upset seeing Danny in such a state, I just reacted without considering all of the facts."

Steve nodded his head in a thoughtful manner, "And now that you have had the time to consider all of the facts, what is your conclusion?" Kono didn't have to think about her reply,

"That you wouldn't do something like that, Boss. Not to Danny or to anyone else." Steve nodded slowly again,

"I made the mistake of holding a grudge before and it stopped me from reconciling with my Dad, and now he's dead and I've lost my chance forever . . . I don't intend to make the same mistake again," he looked at them both for a minute, "but I don't know about my place as the head of Five-0. This was a serious failure in leadership to have such distrust within a team and I can't live with someone getting hurt on my watch because of it – our job is dangerous enough without doubting our own teammates." His eyes flicked up to Chin, "I presume that Laura filled you in on the Governor's decision to resign?" Chin nodded in assent and Steve continued, "Then you'll know that this has implications for Five-0, as the Task Force was created by Governor Jameson and not everyone shares her enthusiasm for the team. The Lt. Governor will be sworn in as the next Governor very shortly, not that he probably knows it yet. I don't know much about Samuel Denning, but he will be under no obligation to maintain the Task Force in its current form, or at all for that matter. I am not going to wait around to find out if I'll be able to continue my investigation into Wo Fat based solely on the whim of a politician. It's my opinion that I'm best placed to pursue Wo Fat if it becomes a Navy mission – his exploits have caught the attention of the higher-ups and they want him stopped by any means necessary. I would have complete authority to proceed with extreme prejudice with the full backing of the Navy." Kono gasped, her hand flying up to her mouth,

"Boss, please don't leave. I'm so sorry about this morning−" Steve cut Kono off mid-sentence,

"Kono, I'm not leaving out of spite or to punish you. I'm leaving because this is my best shot of stopping Wo Fat. At this point, my only objective is to shut him down – I cannot allow him to hurt anyone else, especially my ohana." He rose from his chair and enveloped Kono in a hug, "You're still my ohana and I will do everything in my power to convince Denning of the value of Five-0."

Chin grasped Steve's arm and pulled him into a hug. He whispered into Steve's ear, "I understand, Brah. Do whatever it takes it catch this sonovabitch. You have our full support." Steve felt a rush of emotion and blinked back the tears that had started to form,

"Mahalo, Brother."

Kono leaned into the hug and whispered, "Noho palekana."

Steve wearily climbed down from his truck when he finally made it home that night. He was physically exhausted and emotionally drained. It was dark out, but he didn't care – he needed to feel the soft sand under his feet and he wasted no time in kicking off his boots and making his way out onto his lanai. He stopped short, the moonlight giving off just enough light for him to be able to make out the shape of someone sitting in one of the beach chairs. His hand went to his gun as he stealthily advanced upon the intruder. As he got closer, he recognized who it was and let out a loud sigh, "Whatcha doing here, Danny?"

His ex-partner had been lost in thought and jumped when Steve spoke, "I'm so sorry, Steve. I've ruined everything . . ." Misery oozed out of the man, his shoulders were slumped and his eyes were red from crying. Steve held out his hand and pulled Danny out of the chair and into a hug. The two men just stood there for a minute, taking comfort from one another.

"This is what he wanted Danny, to split up the team and leave me isolated without my Five-0 backup. I'm not gonna let him win, Partner." Danny released a sob that had been building in his throat,

"What can I do to make it right?" Steve smiled,

"You're already doing it, Buddy . . ."


	12. The Governor's sacrifice

**Chapter 12**

Steve disconnected the call to Joe and frowned. He wished that their conversation could've been in person so he was able to observe Joe's body language. Joe was not being entirely forthcoming, that much he could tell over the phone. The mention of 'Shelburne' had elicited a brief pause from Joe, it was hardly noticeable but Steve picked up on it straight away. The man definitely knew more than he was saying. Steve reflected on this, a little hurt that his mentor would lie to him. He thought again of Wo Fat's ominous warning, _"You might not like what you find . . ."_

Turning his thoughts to Danny, he looked over to see his partner fast asleep on the sofa. Danny had been so contrite, ashamed of how he had immediately believed the worst. He admitted that Rachel was his Achilles heel and he lost all sense of reason whenever she was involved. They had talked well into the night - Steve updating Danny on recent events, starting with him being drugged on Friday evening. He had reassured his friend that he didn't accept his resignation and that there was still a place for Danny at Five-0. Danny had grown very quiet when Steve justified his decision to transfer out of the Reserves and back into full-time active duty – he had let Steve speak, not interrupting as he usually would. Then Danny poured his heart out to Steve about his feelings for his ex-wife, how he had never really stopped loving her and that he had even started to hope for a reconciliation. Steve had listened without judgment and then insisted that Danny stay the night, the distraught man was in no shape to drive back to his crappy apartment and be all alone.

Accepting that he was beyond exhausted Steve made his way upstairs and, after a brief visit to his bathroom, was face down on his bed and fast asleep within minutes. The morning light woke him, Steve squinting as the rays of sunlight streamed into his bedroom. He checked his clock and was surprised to see that it was already gone 8 o'clock in the morning. He couldn't remember the last time that he had slept in so late, his Navy habits so deeply ingrained that they were now an integral part of him. He went about his morning business in his usual efficient fashion and was jogging down his stairs exactly 6 minutes later. He sniffed the air and followed the aroma out onto his lanai. Danny was already sat at the table, which had been set for two and was currently groaning under the weight of the hot steaming pancakes, chopped fruit and freshly-brewed coffee, "You're late up Steven, is your internal Rambo alarm clock on the fritz?" Steve rolled his eyes,

"As you well know, _Daniel_ , Rambo was Army and I'm Na-vee." Steve stretched out the word, emphasising the end part. "But never mind that, let me get stuck into this feast that I see before me . . ." He wasted no time in making an ambitious stack of pancakes and fruit and started to eat with his usual gusto.

It was Danny's turn to roll his eyes, "You're such an animal," but he smiled to himself, glad that they had slipped back into their comfortable banter. After his call with Rachel, he had wondered if Steve would ever speak to him again and he wouldn't have blamed him if he didn't. Steve sensed that Danny was dwelling on what had happened again,

"Look, Danno," he said around a mouthful of pancakes, using the nickname that got a rise out of his partner every time, "What's done is done. As I said to Chin and Kono, I refuse to let what's happened in the past dictate my future anymore - I've wasted enough time doing that already and look what it's cost me." He made eye contact with Danny and smirked, "I promise to never mention those damn photos if you vow never again to confuse the Army with the Navy."

Danny smiled despite himself, "Now you know I can't promise that . . ."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Lt. Governor Sam Denning sat in stunned silence, unable to fully process what Pat was telling him. He was a loyal supporter of the current Governor and a constant, comforting presence amongst all of the political wrangling. Finally he opened his mouth, "You're doing what?!"

Pat laid her hand on his arm, "It's the only way to come out of this with my legacy still intact, not to mention my dignity. I'm damn proud of what I've achieved in this office, I can't have it marred by my association with Noshimuri. The man's a criminal and he's had me in his pocket for years . . ." She felt her anger forming at what the head of the Yakuza had done, "God damn him and his blasted cronies! If Hiro was banking on getting a Governor pardon then he's going to be sorely disappointed. Sam, you'll be starting with a clean slate and your eyes wide open, they won't be able to use your influence to allow them to continue their criminal activities." She stopped speaking and glanced at her second-in-command, "I know you have your reservations about the Five-0 Task Force, but don't be too hasty to throw out the baby with the bathwater."

Sam absently stroked his chin as he thought about Pat's advice, "You can't deny that there has been some flak _and_ I've had to listen to the Chief of Police rant about their lack of accountability on many an occasion - he's too scared to tell you to your face, the pussy." Pat conceded the point,

"Yes, but _you_ can't deny that they have also had tremendous success. Will you at least promise to talk to Commander McGarrett before you make any decisions?" Sam sighed in resignation and signalled his assent,

"Okay, agreed." He clapped his hands together, "Now let's work out how to best spin this whole sorry situation for the media . . . if we do this right then you'll be attending a municipal building-naming in your honor in no time . . ." Pat smiled weakly at Sam, thanking her lucky stars for the man's ability to deal with anything that was thrown his way.


	13. Coming to a new understanding

**Chapter 13**

Governor Jameson called Steve from her cell, nervously tapping the ground with her foot as she waited for him to pick up.

"Governor Jameson, everything alright?" Pat shut her eyes as she slowly exhaled,

"Steve, I've had a long discussion with my Lt. Governor and he's been made fully aware of the situation. We'll both be attending a press conference this evening to make the announcement . . . I'm going to allude to my recent diagnosis with a serious illness as the reason for my sudden departure."

Steve nodded to himself, "Sounds like a plan, Governor. I have my worries that you'll become a target – Wo Fat doesn't seem to take kindly to people who mess with his carefully-laid plans," he thought about the Governor's proposition, "but this could be plausible. I think we should 'create' suitable medical records to support your story, just in case someone starts digging around." Pat blinked,

"Do you really think that's necessary, Commander?"

Steve continued, "Yes, I do. Hiro Noshimuri and Wo Fat are vengeful but they're not reckless - if they really believe that you're dying then they'll just let nature run its course and not risk further exposure. Even if they eventually find out that they have been duped, this should all be over by then." Steve made a mental note to talk to Chin to decide on how best to generate a plausible medical backstory for the Governor. "Leave it with me, I'll have something in place before your announcement."

"Thank you, Steve . . . for everything." The Governor allowed herself a little wry smile, at least she had tried to return the favour, "Sam Denning is waiting for your call, he has promised to hear you out about Five-0 before making any decisions regarding the future of the Task Force. I'm sending you his personal cell number now."

"Duly noted. Thank you Governor." Steve rang off and waited for the contact to ping onto his phone. Once he had the number, he dialled the soon-to-be Governor of the State of Hawaii and arranged to meet him at the Governor's mansion. He rang Chin on the way and was satisfied that between the IT-savvy man and his equally techie cousin that they would have the medical records in place by the end of the afternoon.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sam pondered recent events, not sure what to think about his imminent promotion to Governor. He supposed that given that he was already the Lieutenant Governor that people might think it would just be business as usual, but they would be wrong. To be the head of the Executive Branch of Hawaii's State government was a huge honor, but also an enormous burden and he had seen the toll it had taken on Pat Jameson, even before this latest bombshell. He would also become the Commander-in-Chief of the State's military forces - a role which he would perform with pride, having had members of his family serve with distinction. What he didn't need was a headache in the shape of a reckless and unaccountable Task Force. He huffed as he heard Commander McGarrett arriving into the outer chamber of his office – the man could be a force of nature, but then so could one Samuel Denning.

Steve was shown through to Denning's office and took the offered seat. The two men sat and observed each other for a minute before Steve broke the silence, "Thank you for seeing me Lt. Governor Denning. I'm imagining that you think I'm going to fight for Five-0 to be allowed to continue with full means and immunity." Denning raised one eyebrow, somewhat taken aback at Steve's opening comment. He indicated for Steve to continue. "With respect, Sir - our Task Force had done a lot of good under very challenging circumstances, but I'll be the first to admit that we have crossed the line at times," Steve paused a beat, "we get the job done, but maybe it's not the role of a civilian task force to do some of what we've done. As you know, my background as a SEAL means that I was part of the Navy's primary special operations force and we approached situations a little differently because it was required of us. The operations that were assigned to my SEAL Team were given to us for a reason, namely because the very nature of the mission objectives meant that they could not be achieved using conventional methods." Denning allowed Steve to speak freely, intrigued by what he had to say. "When I first started Five-0, I was pursuing a highly dangerous international arms dealer and employed many of the same tactics that I used when I was performing the exact same task for the Navy - but I was in a civilian setting with a whole new set of rules and regulations." Steve smiled, "I struck lucky with the team I assembled. They have stopped me from going too far without preventing the team from reaching its goals. We complement each other and I have grown to appreciate a 'less military' way of working." Steve looked at Denning, "They are an exceptional group of people, Lt. Governor, I trust them with my life."

Denning spoke for the first time, "What are you proposing, Commander? You have my full attention."

Steve gathered his thoughts, determined to get his point across to the Lt. Governor, "Just before these latest developments, I was about to talk to HPD about how to promote closer cooperation between the two forces. I have also had cause to reflect on whether I am the best person to head up Five-0 – my lack of formal police training has caused some friction." Denning quirked a little smile at the understatement, remembering some of the more colorful rants during his meetings with the Police Chief. The SEAL carried on, "I would like to propose that the Five-0 Task Force continues under new leadership. I think you would agree that the original premise was sound, the islands of Hawaii are facing new threats that cannot be effectively tackled by the police in their current format. These criminals do not play by the same rules and so we have to take a different approach if they are to be stopped. An Oahu-based Task Force focusing exclusively on crimes committed within the State of Hawaii makes a lot of sense. I believe it is appropriate for Five-0's powers to be more far-reaching than HPD, as it is effectively the civilian equivalent of the Navy's special operations, but I think it is in the best interests of everyone if Five-0 is not given full means and immunity." Steve stopped talking for a minute, remembering Chin kneeling on the floor with an explosive device clamped around his neck and the desperate measures which had followed. He had allowed his team to be implicated in criminal acts and that was just wholly unacceptable. They shouldn't have ever been put in that position in the first place, caused entirely by the blood feud between himself and Victor Hesse. Sam prompted Steve to elaborate,

"And you, Commander? What will be your role?"

"I have requested that I transfer out of the Reserves and back into full-time active duty, as a Special Warfare Operator with a defined remit. My superiors are open to the idea of closer cooperation with the Task Force, lending Naval resources to joint operations if it is warranted. I would act as a Special Operator as well as the liaison between the Navy and Five-0, my own actions accountable to the Navy. I would primarily be based out of JBPHH, so could remain on the island and maintain my family home."

Sam took his time digesting the information, "I see. Do you have any recommendations for who should head up the Task Force?"

Steve nodded, "I believe Chin Ho Kelly would be the perfect candidate. I have heard that HPD would like to reinstate him at the rank of lieutenant. There is no reason why he couldn't take the position and then head up Five-0. He knows HPD and understands how things operate on these islands better than anyone. I think ex-CIA analyst Jenna Kaye should be offered a formal position on the Task Force, her background and connections in civilian intelligence are extremely valuable to the team. She wouldn't be involved in fieldwork at this stage, but I would recommend that she undertakes the necessary training if that is something that she want to do. I would also recommend that a fifth position be created and filled by someone with a military background," Steve paused a beat, "just a bit less like me." At hearing this, Denning snorted with amusement. Steve smirked and continued, "I can recommend a number of excellent candidates with a wealth of experience in Naval Intelligence and special operations."

Sam Denning nodded sagely, surprised by- but very pleased at Steve's proposition. "I agree, Commander. I think your proposal has merit. It will be one of my first orders of business when I take office." Steve jumped up and eagerly shook Denning's hand, absolutely delighted that the man had been so receptive,

"Thank you, Sir. You won't regret this!" Sam arched an eyebrow but his mouth twitched into a small smile,

"See that I don't, Commander."


	14. You can never have too much cake

**Chapter 14**

Chin was leant over the surface table and called Kono over, "Hey Kono, take a look at this." She jumped up from her chair, pleased at having an excuse to take a break from her tedious report – why hadn't anyone warned her of the sheer volume of paperwork involved in policing? _"Oh yeah, 'cos no one would ever join the police academy in the first place and the island would be overrun with criminals!"_ Her lips quirked into a smile as she thought about the paperwork generated specifically by Five-0, the ammo requisitions alone were astronomical! It suited her though, she loved the nature of the work at Five-0 with the high-octane gun fights and ridiculous stunts they pulled on a weekly basis. She mused on this as she walked over to her cousin, forced to admit that she was in fact a complete adrenalin junkie. Her job scratched an itch that had been present ever since the knee injury which forced her to retire from the professional surfing circuit. The satisfaction that she felt when another major scumbag was taken off the streets was better than the high she had felt on the crest of a wave. Cases involving violence against girls and women were a particular trigger for her, she had 'lived' the feeling of helplessness when she had gone undercover as a roofied party girl to expose the sex-trade human traffickers in the case involving the U.S. Ambassador's missing daughter. She had the comfort of knowing that there were heavily-armed Five-0 and SWAT teams waiting to storm the place on her command, but how must those kidnapped girls had felt - drugged and held against their will, with no one coming to save them? A burning anger had ignited in her that day and she knew that she would never stop fighting to put down the scum involved in the disgusting trade and put them down hard.

"What's up, Cuz?" Chin pulled up enlargements of the photos of Steve and the unknown woman onto the big screen, but he had scanned the back of each picture rather than the side with the images. "I've been doing a bit of research−"

"Of course you have," interrupted Kono, giving him a little smile.

" _As_ _I was saying_ ," Chin emphasized each word with a put-upon expression on his face, "I've been trying to trace who manipulated these pictures. Now if I had access to the electronic copies then I could mine the EXIF data for clues, but we only have the hardcopy prints. So, I started looking into the paper stock used to print these photos and it is Slavich Graded paper," at Kono's blank expression he elaborated further, "it's specialized and high-end and only used by serious photographers. In fact, there are only a couple of places on the mainland who import it from Lithuania. I don't think the originals were taken with a digital camera at all, this was old school."

Kono leaned in a little more, "Okay, you've got my attention – what else?" Chin looked pleased with himself,

"I contacted all the suppliers of this particular paper and Laser Reflections in Washington State make regular shipments of specialized photography supplies to a customer on Oahu. They're sending the details over shortly, I had to get a warrant before they would release the information." Kono held up her hand for a high five,

"Nice catch, Brah!"

When the customer's contact details pinged through, Chin's draw dropped. Kono was concerned at his reaction, "Is something wrong, do you know him?" Chin nodded incredulously,

"Yeah, it's Jerry Ortega – I went to Kukui High School with this guy, we were in the school band together." He gathered up the photos from the table top and slid them back into the envelope. "Come on Cuz, let's go pay my old classmate a visit . . ."

Kono pumped Chin for information on the way over to Jerry's house, finding it hilarious that her cousin was in the school band, "How did I not know this about you?" Chin took the gentle teasing in good humor and proceeded to tell Kono more about Jerry,

"He's a bit out there, but he's a good guy – I can't believe that he would knowingly be mixed up in something like this. I got to know him pretty well when we were at Band Camp together," Chin was lost in thought for a minute, "ahhh, good times. Tiny tents in the stifling humidity of Manoa Valley in August. I played the trumpet you know – I was pretty good, even if I do say so myself." They pulled up to the address and Chin recognized the house, "He obviously still lives with his Mom then, I remember the house from back in the day. I doubt his Mom will remember me though." They walked up the path to the front door and Chin rang the bell. He turned back to Kono, "Now, and this is _very_ important, do not _under any circumstances_ mention the JFK assassination, Area 51 or if Elvis Presley is really dead or not−"

Chin missed the perplexed expression on Kono's face as he was cut off by Mrs. Ortega sweeping him into her arms for a bone-crushing hug, "Chin Ho Kelly! I haven't seen you in years!" She finally put Chin down and looked towards Kono, waiting for Chin to make the introductions,

"Mrs. Ortega, how lovely to see you again." He flashed his badge, "I'm with Five-0 now and this is my Five-0 colleague, Officer Kono Kalakaua. We're here to speak with Jerry, he's come up in connection with a case." The older woman gasped and clutched her hand to her chest,

"Oh my, he's not in any trouble is he?" Kono stepped forward and placed a calming hand on the panicking woman's arm, flashing her best reassuring smile,

"We just need a quick word with you son, Ma'am. I'm sure it will be fine." Taking calming breaths, Mrs. Ortega led them into her house and gestured down the stairs to the basement,

"Please, go right ahead. He's down there researching his latest theory of a government cover-up of something or other," she paused, a long-suffering expression coming over her face, "he won't tell me the details for my 'own safety', he says that he can't guarantee that he can protect me." She rolled her eyes, "Now then, I have homemade cake and can soon put a fresh pot of coffee on."

Chin smiled at her, "That's really not necessary Mrs. Ortega."

"Nonsense!" the woman replied, "you both look half-starved . . ." and she bustled off to attend to her guests.

Kono looked at Chin, "Where the hell have you brought me, Cuz?" She flashed a cheeky grin and made her way down the rickety wooden stairs and came face-to-face with a large scruffy man holding a stack of files. " _Awesome hair_ ," she subconsciously thought, "Hello, Jerry Ortega? I'm Officer Kono Kalakaua from Five-0 and I think you already know Chin."

Jerry carefully examined her badge, "Five-0, that's cool!" he pulled Chin into a hug, "Chin, it's so good to see you, man!" He busied himself arranging his files into little stacks and then turned back to the cousins, "And how can I help Five-0? You know I've been working on my latest exposé of a government cover-up−"

Chin cut the excitable man off, in the interests of getting anywhere with his case in the next few hours, "Right . . . you actually came up in the course of our investigation. I'm following up a lead involving some specialized photography supplies that you received from Laser Reflections on the mainland." Jerry nodded,

"Oh yeah! It's a pain to have to pay the shipping costs, but totally worth it – the Slavich Graded paper produces amazing contrast, especially when dealing with darker shades, it's used by some of the very best professional photographers. Seriously, I can't believe people settle for variable contrast paper – complete amateurs! Selecting the appropriate graded paper to suit your application gives you superb quality prints and don't even get me started on the deep blacks . . ." Chin most definitely _didn't_ want to get Jerry started on the deep blacks and so passed Jerry the envelope containing the prints,

"Can you take a look at these and tell me your thoughts?"

Jerry took the envelope over to his table and carefully laid out the photos. He jumped back with a start, "Whoa – Holy Fox Mulder! Give a man some warning would ya, these are pretty intense!" Once he was over his shock, Jerry took his time examining the prints and nodded sagely at Chin and Kono as he pointed to the photographs, "I can see why you came to see me now, this is Slavich Graded paper and I'm guessing that not many people on Oahu have access to this bad boy." Chin shook his head,

"You've got that right, Jerry. So, what can you tell us, did you take these photos?"

Jerry spluttered, "Who me? Whaaaat? No way, Chin!" He took a moment to compose himself and then levelled his gaze at Chin, "But I know who did."

Thanks to Jerry's intel, Chin and Kono now knew who had taken the photos and altered the negatives. He was a reclusive photography buff living on the island and Jerry often traded supplies with him, including a recent batch of the exact same Slavich paper. Kai Akana was a photography master, the undisputed king of darkroom image manipulation. The art had all but died out since digital images and PhotoShop editing software had taken over the world. However, it was still practiced by enthusiasts and a few notable photographers, some people just preferring the end results that could be achieved using old school techniques. Kai had been in great demand in the 1990s, creating visually stunning photos that had been displayed in galleries across the world and printed in exclusive magazines. Then he had gradually grown tired of the hectic celebrity scene and returned to his beloved Oahu in the early 2000s and become somewhat of a recluse, continuing with his photography solely for his own pleasure. He had struck up a friendship with Jerry and they saw each other a couple of times a month, trading tips and supplies.

Jerry took great delight in describing the different methods employed to combine multiple images onto one negative, with Chin and Kono having no choice but to listen as Mrs. Ortega plied them with copious quantities of coffee and cake in her living room. Chin idly wondered if this was a well-practiced double act to keep unwitting visitors from leaving. After having his fill of cake, Chin's take-home message was that producing the faked images was laborious and time-consuming - a process that required a steady hand and some serious darkroom know-how. He started to stand up, "Well, many thanks for your hospitality Mrs. Ortega," Chin turned to Kono, "Our next stop is Kai Akana's house, we need to know who paid him to doctor those photos."

Jerry stood up as well, "I think I should come with you. Kai's not very good around strangers, I could make the introductions and smooth things over." Chin considered Jerry's offer,

"Yeah, thanks Jerry. That would be helpful, get your gear together and we'll wait for you in the car."


	15. Dark room manipulation

**Chapter 15**

As they pulled up outside the large gates of a house in the exclusive area of Diamond Head, Kono let out a low whistle, "Holy shit, this place is amazing!" Jerry laughed,

"Yeah, I know right!" He punched in the security code for the gate and it slowly swung open. Kono was impressed,

"He gave you have the code?" Jerry nodded,

"It's easier this way, as Kai is often in his darkroom. I just let myself in and come and find him." Kono parked her Chevrolet Cruze, turning to Jerry,

"Right, Jerry - you go and let Mr. Akana know that we would like to talk to him about the photos. Then come and get us, so we don't spook him."

Jerry hopped out of the car and made his way to the imposing front door, pausing to enter the security code. Kono got out of her car and started looking around,

"How much do you think a place like this would cost, Chin?" He gave a little chuckle,

"More than your salary could ever afford!" The cousins were interrupted by a distraught Jerry, as he barrelled out of the house into them,

"Oh my God, it's Kai – he's dead. You gotta do something!" Chin and Kono snapped to attention, drawing their weapons. Chin addressed Jerry,

"Jerry, stay in the car. Let us clear the house." He silently communicated with Kono with a quick jerk of his head and they entered the house in formation, covering each other as they methodically cleared all the rooms in turn. They found Mr. Akana in his darkroom, a bullet hole in the middle of his forehead. Kono wrinkled her nose,

"He's been dead a few days judging by the smell." She turned to Chin with a sigh, "I'll call it in, we won't be getting anything out of Mr. Akana now."

Chin's face was grim, "I'm guessing that was the whole point."

Kono stayed on the scene while Chin drove Jerry home. The man was a mess, absolutely devastated at the murder of his friend. Chin figured that he could at least save his former classmate the trauma of having to wait at the crime scene to be questioned. He could just as easily question Jerry on the journey home, with follow up from HPD to be arranged when Jerry was in a better frame of mind. Jerry spoke for the first time since leaving the house,

"Kai was such a gentle person, who would do something like this?" he sniffed back fresh tears, "he had become a real friend to me . . . I don't have all that many, most people think I'm odd . . ." As he trailed off Chin started to speak,

"We'll find the bastard that did this, I give you my word." Chin looked at Jerry, "A house like that will have an advanced security system with CCTV right? Maybe the cameras captured something?" Jerry sniffed and took in a shaky breath,

"Yeah, Kai was a bit paranoid – he had a hidden system as well. You would never have known to look for it." Chin perked up,

"That's great, Jerry. I'm betting the perps disabled the main CCTV system, but chances are they didn't know about the back-up surveillance." He connected his phone to Kono's mobile and filled her in on the second system, Jerry chipping in with where to find the master control unit.

It was much later that night when Chin and Kono reconvened at Five-0 HQ, having left the crime scene in the capable hands of the HPD forensics unit. Dr. Max Bergman had completed his preliminary examination of the body and had already arranged for Mr. Akana to be transported back to the morgue for the autopsy. Chin requested that Max get onto it right away, despite the late hour; the Chief Medical Examiner readily agreed, understanding the importance of the case to the Task Force. Chin had also called Steve with an update and asked him to come into the office. Steve was waiting for him, leaning against the surface table, and Chin was surprised to see Danny there as well.

Steve explained the detective's presence with a simple statement, "I didn't accept Danny's resignation. In fact, I'm struggling to recall anything about a resignation at all." Danny just shrugged his shoulders.

"Gotcha." Chin said in reply and with that short exchange over, the team got down to business.

With everyone up to speed with all of the latest developments, Chin uploaded the footage from the hidden cameras in Mr. Akana's house. As expected, the main CCTV system had been a complete bust, the whole system wiped clean since the previous Friday morning. With a silent prayer that they'll find something Chin started scrolling through the back-up tapes, starting from when the main system had been disabled. The team all stared at the big plasma screen intently, looking for something out of the ordinary. Steve suddenly spoke,

"Whoa, stop it there." They all watched the footage as Chin paused the playback and slowly scrolled through the frames. "Yes, right there – look, someone is coming through the house." Careful examination of the recording revealed two Asian men making their way to the darkroom. Fortunately Mr. Akana's paranoia had extended to his darkroom and so he had installed hidden surveillance in there as well. There was a brief struggle, but Mr. Akana had been no match for his two assailants. The two men had left with a large box of camera equipment and with Mr. Akana in tow. Steve addressed his team, "I was drugged sometime late on Friday afternoon and so the photos must have been taken that Friday evening while I was incapacitated and before the effect of the roofies wore off. That probably took a hour or two, so factoring in the travel time as well I would estimate that they wouldn't make it back to the house before about 20 hundred hours." He looked at Chin who nodded and responded,

"Okay, I'll start searching from that time onwards, it'll save us scrolling through hours of footage for no reason." They continued with the laborious task of scanning the recordings and sure enough, the two henchmen could be clearly seen frogmarching the hapless photographer back to his darkroom at 8.42 p.m. on Friday night. One of them had stayed with Mr. Akana, keeping watch while he worked on the negatives. They dubbed him Thug Number 1.

"Look," pointed out Kono, "Thug Number 2 comes in at this point and gives our vic a roll of film, probably the pictures of Rachel to splice into the final photos." Danny sucked in a breath,

"Oh God, she was all alone on Friday night – what if they had hurt her?" Steve steadied Danny by putting his arm around his shoulders,

"But they didn't, Buddy. She's okay. The whole point was that she didn't even know that they were there or the game would've been up before it even started – they must've used a long lens from a distance," he looked down at the floor, "I can't apologize enough for dragging your families into my mess." Chin spoke up,

"Hell no, Steve. You're not going there. If there's any apologizing to be done then it should be us for believing you would even think of sleeping with Rachel."

Steve looked Danny in the eye, "I never would. I know what she means to you." Danny shut his eyes and fought to keep his emotions under control,

"Yeah, well . . . we had been getting closer just recently, but it's over now . . . over for good, actually. Rachel made her position crystal clear." Kono pulled Danny into a fierce hug,

"I'm so sorry, Brah, I know how you feel about her." Danny qave a weak smile and indicated that they should resume their review of the security tapes.

They duly turned their attention back to the footage and continued to watch as the expert photographer was forced to manipulate the negatives and develop the film, fast-forwarding through the many hours of him toiling away in the darkroom. Finally, the man was finished. Obviously in a hurry, the two henchmen helped Mr. Akana peg the prints up to dry. They turned the lights back on and then one of them made a call. Chin skipped ahead until another man was seen entering the darkroom. They all recognized him at the same time and Danny said his name aloud,

"Wo Fat." They focused on the screen, watching as the man carefully examined each photo in turn. He smiled in satisfaction and then calmly pulled out a gun and shot Mr. Akana in the head. Even knowing how he had died, it was shocking to watch and the whole team flinched as the poor man slowly slid to the ground, a look of disbelief frozen onto his face. Silence fell over the room, as they processed what they had just witnessed. Steve clenched his jaw, sickened at the thought of another innocent person getting caught up in Wo Fat's demented game. Danny sensed his guilt and took his arm, "Steve, you are not responsible for what this madman is doing - Wo Fat bears all of the blame."

Steve nodded, but wasn't really listening. He was consumed with anger and balled up his hands into tight fists. He clenched his jaw and spoke to his team, "This ends now. Kai Akana will be the last person to die at the hands of Wo Fat."


	16. A friend returns

**Chapter 16**

Steve brought his team up to speed with his discussion with Governor Denning and how he saw Five-0 operating, going forward. He also explained the reasoning behind his decision to transfer back into active service, "Wo Fat has to be stopped and this is my best shot at catching the bastard." Steve gave his team a little smile, admitting that he had grown to appreciate their way of working and would miss the snarking and playful banter, "I'll still see you guys, I am the official Navy-Five-0 Liaison after all. I'm thinking that also extends to loco moco at Ono Laulau at least once a week!" He took in the long faces surrounding him and sighed, "Look, Denning is not the biggest fan of Five-0 and he's the one running the show now. I just headed him off and gave him a better alternative – at least they'll still be a Five-0 and I'm gonna need all the help I can get if I'm to capture Wo Fat . . ."

The Five-0 team had left the office in the early hours of Wednesday morning, still reeling from Steve's plans for the Task Force and his move back into the Navy. As Steve lay in his bed, he reflected on what had turned out to be his last day in charge of the Task Force. They were a hell of a team. He wished he had told them that more often, but hoped that his actions showed what he found it hard to say aloud. He huffed a little laugh to himself, _"Danny would have a field day with this – the emotionally-stunted military cyborg voluntarily considering sharing his feelings."_ Steve fell asleep with the smile still tugging on the side of his mouth.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Steve slipped back into Navy life very easily, the transition smoother that he had been expecting. Captain Brown had been quietly working behind the scenes to 'sell' Steve's new role to his fellow commanding officers and this had helped enormously. Of course the evidence gathered by Jenna hadn't hurt his case either, as it showed the full extent of Wo Fat's influence as a highly dangerous arms dealer who was in league with terrorist organizations; not to mention the video showing Wo Fat murdering Mr. Akana in cold blood. It was agreed that in the absence of having Wo Fat in custody, Victor Hesse was their next best source of information. Steve had been granted authority from the Governor to arrange for his father's murderer to be transferred from Halawa prison into Navy custody. Steve was delighted with the level of cooperation from Sam Denning, who had readily agreed to keep the details on a strictly need-to-know basis, concurring with Steve that it was too risky to loop in HPD or the personnel at Halawa Correctional Facility.

When Steve's highly classified mission to North Korea, codenamed Operation Roundup, had been greenlit in the first place the objective had been to capture and then extract information from Anton Hesse about the brothers' links to terrorist groups, their supply chains and the names of the buyers. Then the convoy had been ambushed, setting in motion the chain of events that had led to John McGarrett's death and Steve starting Five-0. In some ways, they were just re-setting Steve's mission back to that point, but focusing on the other brother in the Hesse partnership. While it was true that Anton had been more hands-on than his brother, Victor still had valuable intel if he could just be 'persuaded' to share it with the Navy. Steve was reminded of Danny's rant about treating a suspect as a source of information and following proper police procedure while Steve was dangling Sergei Ivanovitch off a rooftop during one of their very first cases. He winced inwardly and thought to himself, _"Better you don't know anything about how Victor Hesse's interrogation is going to go, Buddy – rooftops and shark tanks are going to seem completely reasonable in comparison."_ Then Steve remembered Danny, desperate to clear Meka's name, thinking nothing of tying a cokehead art dealer to the hood of the Camaro with bungee cords and driving up the ramp of a parking structure at full speed _. "Mmmm - pot, kettle and black, my friend."_

The prisoner transportation had all gone smoothly, no one any the wiser that it was happening or where Hesse had been taken. Joe White had flown in from Naval Base Coronado, a military installation that Steve was well-acquainted with having spent many torturous weeks there for his BUD/S training. Steve was waiting for his former training CO on the tarmac. The military transport touched down and Joe efficiently weaved his way through the hordes of military personnel to make his way over to Steve,

"Commander McGarrett, get me up to speed." Steve directed Joe to his truck and waited until they were alone before speaking,

"How have you been Joe, are you liking training the next batch of wannabe SEALs?" Joe clapped him on the shoulder and quirked a little smile,

"Hell, yeah. Nothing like putting the fear of God into some jumped up recruits who are under the sorely misguided impression that they are the best thing since sliced bread."

Steve barked out a laugh, "Oh yeah, I remember that feeling." He glanced across at his mentor, "I'm really glad you're here, Joe – I screwed the pooch big time the first time we tried this." Images from the mission flooded into his mind; watching his best friend Freddie in his rear view mirror, slumped over his machine gun - still firing at the enemy during his dying moments, the convoy being attacked and his teammates falling around him, Anton bleeding out right in front of him and finally the horrific sound of the single gunshot over the phone. He gave his head a little shake to help bring him out of the vivid memories. Joe waited for him to regain his composure,

"Missions go to hell sometimes, Son. Especially ones as off the books as Operation Roundup." Joe paused to check that Steve was really hearing what he was trying to say to him before continuing, "Do you remember Vice Admiral Janderman? He was present for the initial mission briefing in the Iraqi Green Zone last September." Steve hummed in agreement, "Well, he's requested to be kept in the loop." Steve nodded, he had been expecting it as Janderman was the driving force behind the original operation and would relish another chance to dismantle the arms traffickers' networks. He inquired,

"What about the other man who was present? We were never introduced but he was obviously from CIA Special Activities Division." The SEAL was well aware of the elite SAD - they often recruited operators from SEAL Teams and Steve had been involved in joint ops with the group on a number of occasions. Joe answered him,

"Yes, SAD were involved, they got us valuable intel for the INFIL and extraction. Why do you ask?" Steve looked grim,

"I'm not sure that I want them anywhere near this. Look at how the Hesse brothers were always one step ahead of us and that was despite all we knew about them - we were actively hunting them for Christ's sake! Then it turns out that Wo Fat was actually the one in charge the entire time and we didn't even know he existed until recently. If it wasn't for Jenna, I wouldn't know anything about him at all."

"What can you tell me?" inquired Joe. Steve recapped all he knew about the elusive arms dealer,

"He's a former agent for the Chinese Ministry of State Security, he climbed through the ranks and was very highly regarded and then he just dropped off the face of the earth." Joe nodded sagely,

"You don't get to be a senior agent for the secretive MSS without learning a thing or two about spy craft."

"And that's not all," continued Steve, "despite the CIA tracking a ghost for a nearly a decade, it was only when Jenna Kaye stumbled across a number of illegal arms deals that anyone was finally able to put a name to a face."

"When was that?" asked Joe.

"About 3 years ago, she was an analyst working a desk at Langley and was providing intel for a State Department Report outlining how the Yakuza were laundering their money and that led to the intelligence on the arms deals being brokered out of China. It was entirely her intel that was the basis for the Company dispatching a grab team to Macau, codenamed Operation Switchback. But Wo Fat knew they were coming or, even worse, deliberately left enough breadcrumbs to lure them in like lambs to the slaughter. The entire team were killed. This is very personal for Jenna, her fiancé was part of the extraction team and now she feels responsible for his death." Joe frowned,

"Why is she still working the case? Surely she was removed because of the conflict of interest?" Steve nodded,

"She was, but continued to covertly investigate Wo Fat in her own time. A few months ago she tracked him to Hawaii and confirmed his presence here with security footage of a visit to Victor Hesse in Halawa. At that point she put in for extended leave and travelled to Oahu to track him full time." Steve looked at Joe, "She told me Wo Fat is the one in charge, no one makes a move without his approval – not the Yakuza, not Victor Hesse. He's the son of a bitch who ordered Dad's death. Hesse was just the trigger man."

Joe clenched his jaw tightly as anger rose up within him, John had been like a brother to him. He pondered on this information for a couple of minutes, "So, let me get this right, somehow Wo Fat knows all about an elite Company capture squad coming for him in Macau? Well that alone is highly suspect – then you have to consider how the hell he has been able to operate in the shadows all this time without some serious help . . . the sort of help you might get from an insider in a government agency or two." Joe caught Steve's eye, "I agree with your assessment, we don't involve any other agencies until Wo Fat is captured or killed . . . preferably the latter."


	17. The trade

**Chapter 17**

Steve and Joe strode into the briefing room on base, all eyes on them as they took their places in front of the screen. Vice Admiral Janderman was patched in by the techs and greeted the two men,

"Gentleman. I understand we have another shot at achieving the original objectives of Operation Roundup?" Steve stepped forward a little,

"Yes, Sir. New intel has given us a lead on a much bigger fish than Anton Hesse," Steve and Joe proceeded to brief the Admiral on all they had on Wo Fat and their concerns about involving anyone outside the Navy. "We have Victor Hesse in our custody now, he is currently being held in a secure location awaiting interrogation."

Janderman nodded in satisfaction, "Excellent news. How do you propose to conduct the interrogation?" Joe spoke up,

"Our primary focus is getting a lead on Wo Fat's location. Commander McGarrett will act on any credible intel that can be extracted from the prisoner and lead the team to acquire the target. I'll oversee the transfer of Hesse to a more secure site for enhanced interrogation. He's our only link to Han Ji-Woon and the Dark Sun militia group and we can't risk remaining at our current location and being compromised." Steve contemplated Joe's last statement, his brow creased in thought,

"Why bother chasing Wo Fat when we can just lead him to us?" Janderman gestured for Steve to continue. Steve cleared this throat and continued, "He's too careful to leave loose ends behind . . . Victor Hesse being interrogated by Naval Special Ops is one hell of a loose end. Wo Fat will be desperate to either get him out or kill him, whichever option happens to best suit his purposes."

"Surely he wouldn't take the risk of coming himself?" mused the Admiral. Steve responded,

"I'm not so sure, he'll want to know what Hesse divulged so he can take steps to mitigate any potential risks to his organization. He needs to know which of his operations may have been compromised, he won't want to burn them all unnecessarily." Jaderman spoke again,

"Yes, Commander. But he could do all of that through a third party, without any risk to himself."

Steve looked up at the screen, "But he'll think that I will be there doing the interrogation. He wants something from me, something to do with my family's past. I'm betting that he won't be able to turn down the opportunity of getting to me and Hesse at the same time . . . this is very personal for him and that makes him easier to lure in." Jaderman considered Steve's argument,

"We can't risk Hesse. Commander White will move the prisoner as planned once you have completed your interrogation, Commander McGarrett. Then we make use of a decoy to make Wo Fat think that Hesse is still on site. How will we leak the location without raising suspicion?"

Steve answered, "Requesting permission to loop in the Five-0 Task Force, Sir. We know there's a leak at HPD feeding intel back to the Yakuza, so let's use this to our advantage." The Admiral gave a quick nod of this head,

"Permission granted. Commander, go ahead and make the necessary arrangements. Keep me updated, gentleman." He turned and made the cut sign to the tech sitting behind him and the feed was terminated.

Joe took command of the situation in the briefing room, "You heard Admiral Janderman, let's make this happen boys and girls . . ."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Steve changed out of his Navy working uniform back into his civvies, it wasn't yet common knowledge that Five-0 was under new leadership and he was back in the Navy and Steve wanted to keep it that way for a little while longer. Governor Denning had agreed to hold off from making any announcements about Five-0 for a few days in the hope that Wo Fat would think that his plan was working and that the Task Force was splintering apart, leaving Steve isolated. Steve's first order of business was enlisting his former team's help to put together a ruse to entrap Wo Fat and then get in touch with Jenna. She had been out of contact for the last week, chasing down new leads from a trusted source who was still at Langley, but sympathetic to Jenna's crusade. It was better for Jenna to go back to the mainland and meet her source in person and Steve was concerned that Jenna might be a target, after all it was her intel that had got Wo Fat on the run in the first place.

Steve had carried out extensive background checks on everyone he brought onto Five-0, no matter how temporarily they would be working with them. He justified this invasion of their privacy by telling himself that he really didn't like surprises, 'cos these could come and bite you in the ass. Jenna Kaye was no exception, but he needed to know more. A perk of being back in the Navy was his unrestricted access to Naval Intelligence resources and he had lucked out in that department when Eddie's son, Lieutenant Harry Brown, was assigned to the operation. Steve was in awe of Harry's mad IT skills which, when combined with his keen mind, made him a force to be reckoned with indeed. He had duly set Harry the task of digging into Jenna's past, focusing on the 3 years since the death of her fiancé.

Hating himself for the intrusion, Steve had authorised a tap on Jenna's phone – he just didn't trust Jenna's self-preservation skills and wanted to know ahead of time if she was going to be putting herself at risk. She wasn't an agent and didn't have the inherent awareness of potential danger like he did, plus if she was in any danger then she lacked the skills to get herself out of trouble. When Wo Fat had subtly threatened Jenna's safety in a bid to keep Steve on his best behaviour during their little 'chat' at the Chinese Restaurant, Steve had been truly terrified for her. She wouldn't have seen it coming or been able to fight her way out of trouble. He vowed after that to keep an eye on her movements, feeling a strong kinship with this lowly analyst who had given up everything in her quest to bring down the arms dealer. He knew that she was not a wealthy woman and had been forced to sell her house and was living off the proceeds to fund her private investigation. At the end of all this, she would be left with nothing and her fiancé would still be dead. Steve could relate – no matter what happened with Wo Fat his father would still be lost to him forever, with no chance of repairing their fractured relationship.

Steve was just about the leave the base when Harry caught up to him. There were people about, so he took Steve's arm arm and led him out of earshot before talking to him, "Commander McGarrett, I need you to listen to something. It's from Jenna Kaye's phone tap." Steve nodded his understanding and quickly followed Harry back to his office.

Harry played back the recording of a call Jenna had received earlier that day. Steve listened intently, stiffening when he recognised the voice - it was Wo Fat. How the hell had he got Jenna's private cell number? He forced himself to concentrate on the call, tensing as he picked up on the menace in the man's tone,

"Ms. Kaye, how nice to finally speak to you in person. I believe you are very well acquainted with me already, having spent the last 3 years trying, _and failing_ , to track my every move." Jenna had sucked in a shocked breath and stumbled over her reply, but still managed to convey her hatred for the man on the other end of the phone as she spat the words out,

"What do you want?" Wo Fat had chuckled, but it held no humor,

"Oh come now, Ms. Kaye, that's no way to speak to someone who holds all the cards and has something that you want−" Jenna had cut him off,

"What the hell are you talking about? The only thing I want from you is to see you behind bars!"

He replied, his voice deceptively calm, "Oh, quite to the contrary – I have something that you want very much, or should that be someone." Jenna had said nothing, but Steve could hear her distressed breathing. "I thought you would be interested to know that Agent Hirsch survived Operation Switchback."

Jenna had cried out at that point, unable to help herself, "Josh is alive?"

"Indeed he is . . . and very useful he has been to me too. It would appear that Agent Hirsch has a great deal of affection for you and was prepared to give up all sorts of classified information to prevent you from having a little _'accident'_." The last word positively exuded menace and Steve clenched his fists in anger. But Wo Fat wasn't done, "However, now I have a greater use for him and I am proposing a trade - your fiancé in exchange for Commander McGarrett. He trusts you, I'm sure an intelligent young woman like yourself can think of a suitably plausible cover story to lure him away from Hawaii. I did have the good Commander at my mercy very recently, but it didn't suit my plans to take him then . . . but things change and now I would like to meet him for a civilised conversation without having a gun in my face and I don't think that he would respond to a dinner invitation." Jenna had been lost for words, but finally regained enough composure to reply,

"I want proof of life, you sonovabitch. Then we'll talk. I'll be on the next flight back to Honolulu – have the proof delivered to me at my hotel," she paused, "I'm sure you already know where I'm staying." Wo Fat chuckled again,

"You presume right, Ms. Kaye . . . so, do we have a deal?" Jenna had hesitated before replying,

"Yes," and promptly ended the call. Steve locked eyes with Harry, feeling completely and utterly betrayed,

"I trusted her, but you heard her . . . she's prepared to do it - she's really willing to trade me for her fiancé!"


	18. A problem shared

**Chapter 18**

Harry looked at Steve sympathetically, knowing how much the people who had been welcomed into his ohana meant to him. He tried to present possible alternatives for his friend to consider, "You don't know that for sure, Steve. She might just be stringing him along and is going to get in contact with you the minute her flight lands." Steve gave Harry a grateful smile, appreciating his support,

"Yeah, you're right. I'm jumping the gun." He pulled his mouth into a nasty smirk, "If she does go through with it then I get what I want anyway – a meeting with Wo Fat. Except instead of me being his prisoner, the tables are going to be turned – the bastard's not gonna know what hit him!" Steve clapped the intelligence officer on the back, "Thanks, man. Do me a favor and make a copy of that call for me. I have to share this with my te . . . um, with Five-0." Steve quickly corrected his slip, but Harry caught it and smiled,

"They'll always be your team, Steve."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Steve strode into Five-0 HQ, armed with the recording. He was relieved to find Danny, Chin and Kono all in their respective offices. He noted that Chin had yet to move into the master office at the far end of the room and wondered why he hadn't. Chin saw him first and rose out of his chair to greet his former boss, "Howzit, Steve" he glanced down to the package in Steve's hand, "looks like you've got something to share with the class?" Steve was prevented from answering Chin's question by Kono barrelling into him for a quick hug,

"Back so soon? Missing us already, Brah?" Steve smiled at her boundless enthusiasm and waited for Danny to join the party. He smirked at the detective,

"What no hug, Danno?" Danny mock-glared at him,

"Just because you've been gone a couple of days doesn't make me wanna act all warm and fuzzy when you come strolling in here like you own the place," he waved his hands around to solidify his point, "and for the last time, what I have told you about calling me 'Danno'?" Steve put on his best innocent face,

"But that's your name. It would just be weird if I started calling you David or Michael or James−"

"You can stop now, ladies," Chin cut off the bickering, "we need to see what our official Navy Liaison has for us before we all die of old age."

Steve felt a little warm glow inside him, God he had missed this and it had only been a couple of days. He forced himself to focus on the case, "I need to update you all on the relevant parts of my Navy briefing from this morning, we may have a little covert misinformation that needs spreading through HPD." It took Steve several minutes to bring the team up to speed on the latest developments. He hesitated for a second and then handed the package to Chin to upload onto the surface table, "There's something you all need to hear . . ."

After listening to the recording of Jenna's phone call, they stood in stunned silence. Kono was the first to speak, "That bitch! We welcomed her into our team with open arms and she goes and stabs us in the back!" Chin shot her a look,

"Not so fast, for all we know she could be on her way to tell us about this right now. Look what happened the last time we jumped to conclusions without all the facts." Kono and Danny looked suitably chastened, remembering all too well. Chin's fingers flew over the touchscreen keyboard, "Look, her flight lands tonight. She'll go straight to her hotel to check for the proof of life evidence and then she should come to us for help. I vote to give her the benefit of the doubt unless she gives us good reason to think otherwise." Steve caught Chin's eye to silently thank him, grateful for the man's steady presence.

Kono spoke up, "Yeah, you're right, sorry . . . oh, by the way, I received some interesting news from a prison guard at Halawa, he's my cousin on my mother's side−"

"Of course he is," interrupted Danny. Kono shot him a look and kept speaking,

"He's heard rumors that one of the guards is being investigated for falsifying visitor records and selling information about the inmates to the highest bidder. It's all very hush hush, they're building the case against him and don't want to spook him." She stopped talking and looked up at her teammates, "I've got a name. How about I do a little careful digging and see what I can find?"

Steve nodded thoughfully, "Agreed. Follow the money, see who's paying him and if the timings of the payments can be linked to specific events. As far as anyone knows, Hesse is still in the secure medical wing undergoing psychiatric assessment . . . you know what, let's loop in the IAO Chief Investigator, share our information and get this guy convicted. I'd put money on him arranging for one of Wo Fat's goons to gain access to the medical wing to take out Hesse. They'll be posing as a bogus prison doctor or something. IAO can set up a sting and take them all down, there could be other people in on it."

Danny blew out a low whistle, "Wow, voluntarily offering to work with the Internal Affairs Office! Who are you and what have you done with the real Steven McGarrett?" Steve smirked,

"Maybe I'm just learning that there is an easier way to do things from time to time . . . I still reserve the right to cause mayhem as and when it is warranted." Steve stopped short and looked over to Chin, a bashful look coming over his face, "Um . . . sorry, Chin. This is your show now. What do you want to do?"

Chin huffed out a little laugh and waved Steve away with his hand, "No way, Brah - you're not palming this one off onto me. This is your mission and you're taking point until that slippery bastard is behind bars or in the ground." Steve gave him a little nod of appreciation,

"In that case, let's work on our plan for Operation Misinformation." Danny chimed in,

"See, that's a good name for a mission – it's informative and factually correct. Not like the ridiculous names you come up with for your classified Army ops."

"Navy, Danny. It's the Na-vee . . ."


	19. Proof of life

**Chapter 19**

Jenna had practically run through the airport after clearing customs and security and jumped into the first cab that she saw. She was humming with nervous energy for the entire journey, willing the driver to make his way through the traffic and get her to her destination. From the moment she had cut the call from Wo Fat, she had been able to think of nothing else. What if Josh really was alive? She had spent the last 3 years second-guessing every move that she had made when connecting all the intel that had sent him and his team to their deaths. The 'if only' thoughts had been endless, playing on repeat in her head every day since she had received the devastating news. How can she not have seen that it was all too easy, too convenient . . . if truth be told, she already knew the answer – she had been caught up in the chase, too blinded by her own excitement to see what was right in front of her. Of course, in reality her intel had been passed up the chain and approved by people with much more experience than her, with the final authorisation given at the highest level; but Jenna couldn't allow herself to take comfort in that, not when she was still too busy putting all the blame on her own shoulders. This was her chance to make it right and she resolved to do whatever it took to achieve that objective.

The taxi wheels had barely had time to stop turning before Jenna was shoving the fare at the driver and running into her hotel. She couldn't wait for the elevator, instead taking the stairs two at a time. She breathlessly let herself into her room, the door lock still a bit iffy ever since Steve had kicked it in the first day that they had met. She scanned the room like a woman possessed and it was then that she noticed that her 'evidence' wall was almost completed bare - all her intel on Wo Fat and the Yakuza had been taken away and in its place was a plain envelope, just hanging there innocuously, completely unaware that it held such importance for one woman struggling to come to terms with her part in the tragic events which had unfolded in Macau.

Jenna unpinned the envelope from the wall and fell back onto her sofa with it in her hand. She took a deep breath and ripped it open, the contents spilling out onto her lap. With shaking hands she examined each item carefully, her hand flying up to her mouth as she tried to supress a cry. There were multiple photographs showing a man tied to a chair. He was painfully thin and his hair was long but she could clearly recognize him as her fiancé, Josh. A newspaper was propped up on his knee and on closer inspection she could see that it was dated from a week ago. A smaller envelope contained a clump of hair, the roots still attached. She would be able to have the DNA extracted from the cells in the hair roots for confirmation of their owner. She unravelled a roll of tissue paper and a watch fell out; it was the one that she had given to Josh during their last Christmas together, the inscription that she had so carefully chosen making her catch her breath - she whispered it to herself, _"Time stops when I am with you."_

Finally, there was a folded letter. Jenna had to give herself a minute before she could open it up to read it, this was the ultimate proof that Josh was still alive - a handwritten letter in his distinctive scrawl. She read it aloud to herself, "Jenna my love, don't ever give up on me, I'm doing everything I can to make it home to you. I told you that night, _it wasn't for nothing,_ and I still mean it. It will never be for nothing. I love you, Josh." Jenna dropped the letter and sobbed into her hands, only Josh could have written that with the reference to what he had said to Jenna the night of his terrible motorcycle accident. Later he had laughed that not only had he gained a surgical pin in his knee but he'd also gained a fiancée and that he much preferred the latter. Jenna cried herself to sleep, overwhelmed by the revelation that Josh was still alive.

Jenna was awoken early the next morning by her cell ringing, she snatched it up and accepted the call,

"Ms. Kaye. I take it you have examined the proof of life evidence my associates left for you." Jenna choked out her reply,

"Yes, I have it." She waited for Wo Fat to continue, not trusting herself to speak any more.

"Well then, you have what you asked for and now it is my turn to ask . . . I want you to bring Commander McGarrett to me. I have eyes and ears everywhere, if you attempt to alert the Five-0 Task Force or your CIA colleagues then I will know. I have a tracking device and trace on your cell and laptop, so I know that you haven't contacted anyone yet . . . make sure it stays that way. You are under surveillance and any deviation from my instructions will result in our deal being called off and I'll send you your fiancé piece by piece. I hope you believe me when I tell you that he will suffer." He paused, letting the threat linger, "I'll contact you with precise instructions in due course. You don't need to check in with me, I'll know where you are and who you are with. Good day, Ms. Kaye."

Jenna threw the phone down on the bed and sobbed into her pillow, desperation overcoming her as she faced an impossible choice. She opened up the letter from Josh and re-read it, pouring over every word. Her fiancé needed her and had been hanging on for 3 long years to come home – home to her. Her decision was made in that moment. Josh was a prisoner, helpless and alone and she was the only one who could save him. And save him she would, by any means necessary.

About an hour after Wo Fat's call, Jenna noticed that an envelope had been pushed under her door, she quickly snatched it up and checked the corridor but there was no sign of anyone. There was a single sheet of paper in the envelope, detailing exactly where she was required to bring Steve and when, along with a script that she was to follow. Later that day, she dialled the Five-0 office and waited to see who would answer. Danny picked up, after a brief game of phone chicken with his colleagues. Kono has gestured to her mouth full of malasada and Chin was busy tapping away on the computer. He sighed and answered the call, "Detective Williams."

Jenna took a calming breath before speaking, her tone of voice falsely perky, "Oh, hi Danny, it's Jenna." Danny steeled himself for the conversation ahead, not wanting to give anything away,

"Jenna – great to hear from you. How's the land of civilisation where people wear ties and loafers to conduct their business without being harassed by their so-called friends?" Despite the dire circumstances she cracked a little smile,

"Um, about that – I'm not in Virginia any more. I came back to Hawaii last night." Of course, Danny already knew this and he put into motion the pre-arranged plan to make it seem like Wo Fat's plan to split up Five-0 was working, as they knew that the man was listening in on Jenna's calls,

"Oh right. Did you find anything of importance? Steve's not here at the moment, I can't really get into it over the phone but the team's a bit all over the place right now."

Jenna hedged her bets, "No, unfortunately my source couldn't give me anything that we didn't already know but I really need to get hold of Steve, he's not answering his cell." Danny tried to get the analyst to come and meet them in private, away from prying eyes and ears,

"I don't know where he is, or particularly care for that matter, maybe he has his phone switched to silent mode. Why don't you swing by the office in an hour or so and we can all catch up? We could really do with updating you on some developments with the team." Jenna thought about her options and decided that she couldn't face the whole team,

"Can we do it later? I'm actually a little busy with some urgent errands right now. I'll keep trying Steve's phone. Thanks, Danny." Jenna rang off and cursed that she hadn't been able to speak to Steve privately. She had to get her plan in motion before she lost her nerve.


	20. Wedding bells

**Chapter 20**

Steve had been travelling back to the Naval base when he had seen Jenna's call, but he let it ring out and go to answerphone. She hadn't left a message, and he guessed that she would be trying the main Five-0 office number next. He trusted his former team to deal with her for now, hopefully they could coax her into HQ and get her to talk to them away from prying eyes. Sure enough, Danny called him a few minutes later. Not surprisingly Jenna hadn't said anything over the phone, given that she knew that Wo Fat was monitoring her calls. However, she had blown off his attempts to get her to meet them in person, only wanting to talk to Steve privately. It didn't bode well for her coming clean about the whole thing.

Joe was waiting for him when he arrived, they both had a lot to catch up on from the past day. Joe went first, "We have a small window of opportunity to question Hesse before he is transferred to an offshore location for further interrogation. Knowledge of this more permanent location will be strictly need-to-know. That won't include you, Commander." Steve gave a little nod of his head,

"Understood, Sir. I only want one thing out of the bastard and then he is no longer my concern." Steve gave his mentor a knowing smirk, "We have a new development that gives us a much better shot of taking out Wo Fat that wouldn't involve relying on him taking the bait to try and get to Hesse." He then filled in Joe on Wo Fat's proposition to Jenna. Joe perked up,

"That's excellent news, Commander. Let me get the briefing room prepped and you can update the team. Should Lieutenant Brown be present?"

"Yes, Sir. We'll need his expertise to pull this off. Permission to read in Captain Brown? He is aware of Wo Fat and I would appreciate his insight." Joe indicated his agreement and strode away to make the necessary arrangements.

Steve found himself back in the briefing room, taking his Navy colleagues through the revised plan. Captain Brown was present and had lifted his head slightly in greeting when Steve entered the room. Steve explained that it was now unlikely that Jenna was going to come to Five-0 for help and so her next contact would probably be for the sole purpose of duping him into coming with her to meet Wo Fat. They brainstormed possible scenarios that would be used to reel him in, the most likely being Steve accompanying the analyst to a clandestine meeting with someone who had intel on Wo Fat. Steve concluded that the location would be key, it would have to be somewhere where Wo Fat had contacts who could provide a safe haven and which would be difficult to infiltrate should a rescue attempt be launched. China was unlikely, as the MSS wouldn't take kindly to having the traitor back on their turf. Wo Fat's deep ties to the Yazuka made Japan a definite possibility. Steve pondered a little more, "Would it be out of the question for Wo Fat to make use of his connection to Han Ji-Woon and the Dark Sun militia group? Using North Korea as a base would certainly hamper any attempts at retaliation."

Joe frowned, "How close do we think he is to Dark Sun?" Steve shrugged,

"That we don't know, but I know a man who does and he just happens to be in our custody . . ." Joe nodded slowly, a satisfied smile forming on his face,

"That we do. I think we have an interrogation to conduct, Commander." After issuing orders to the team Joe left the briefing room with Steve. They were both stopped by Harry, who indicated that they should follow him around the corner. Once in private, the intelligence officer addressed them,

"Sirs, I have something that I would like to show you both." Joe frowned a little,

"Could you not have raised this in the briefing, Lieutenant?" Harry fidgeted under his stare,

"Um, I thought it was too circumstantial to bring up in an official briefing . . . but I think you'll want to see this." Steve and Joe silently communicated between themselves with just a look, mutually agreeing to hear the young lieutenant out. They accompanied him back to his desk, where he proceeded to take the men through the information that he had uncovered, "So, I was retracing Victor Hesse's movements just before we know he was in Hawaii to . . . um . . . negotiate with Commander McGarrett for the release of his brother," he locked eyes with Steve, sorry that he had needed to bring up the memory, "and I have circumstantial evidence placing him in Chengou about 2 weeks before the convoy was ambushed. That's in the Sichuan Province of China - it's remote and mountainous. I found it odd because there are no known militia groups or persons of interest in the region. In fact, there's absolutely nothing that you would make you look at it at all and I wondered if that was the whole point. I combed through the limited satellite imagery that is available for that region on the days in question and found activity around a residence, but there's nothing definitive that links Victor to the property – he may never have been there and this is all a complete waste of time." Steve stepped in,

"No, I like where this is going. Carry on, Lieutenant."

Harry breathed a little sign of relief, he had been worried that his superiors would think that he had been wasting time and resources, "I found a money trail linking a woman called Daiyu Mei to the property."

"And what do we know about her?" inquired Joe.

"Not a lot, she was born in 1967 in Shanghai and is independently wealthy and from a good family. Her father is a mid-level government official and before her mother retired she was a well-respected university professor at Fudan University. That's a C9 League University, one of the most prestigious and selective in China – equivalent to our Ivy League universities. Nothing comes up that would set alarm bells ringing." Steve asked,

"What about her own career, where does she work?" Harry referred to his notes,

"Um, she studied Finance and Law at Fudan University and graduated in the top 10% of her year. She was offered a training position at a prestigious law firm, Woo International, and stayed there after she finished her training. She worked in the corporate and investment branch overseeing business mergers and acquisitions. She left the firm 2 years ago and hasn't worked anywhere else since."

Joe chipped in, "Significant others?" Married, kids?" Harry shook his head, I couldn't find anything on record at all. I have a contact at the Chinese Embassy digging a little deeper . . . oh, that reminds me, they might have replied overnight, what with the time difference . . . just let me check . . . yes, they sent a file over." All three men quickly scanned the contents of the file. Harry was the first to spot something, well-versed in speed scanning through pages of text, and he pointed to the screen,

"There - it looks like she applied for a certificate of marriageability 2 months ago. Huh, she must be getting married, the paperwork is a killer in China – even worse if you're not marrying a Chinese national. Let's see if we have anything on her betrothed, um . . . . yes, a Japanese man called Asahi Tanaka." Harry thought for a minute, "Before you can marry, one of the many things you have to do is submit 3 photos of you both together to the relevant authorities, I should be able to access that in just a minute," Harry furiously tapped away at his computer, "yep, coming up now . . ."

A shocked silence fell over the room as they all stared at the images on the screen. Finally Steve spoke, "Holy shit," he clapped Harry on the back, "you've just hit the motherload, my friend . . . er, Lieutenant."


	21. Leverage

**Chapter 21**

Steve was still digesting Harry's intel. Wo Fat was about to be married. Finally, he had some leverage over the man seemingly intent on making his life a living hell. They had left the industrious intelligence officer to his many tasks and walked back to their office. "We can use this to get more information out of Hesse," Steve turned to his CO and explained himself, "I wonder what he would be prepared to tell us if we threatened to let it be known that it was him who told us about Daiyu Mei and then 'accidently' leaked his location to Wo Fat." He gave a menacing smile, "I'm willing to bet he'd be positively chatty."

Joe took them through the complicated process of getting to the secure location where Victor Hesse was being held. They left their phones and anything else that could be tracked at the base and took a circuitous route in an unmarked truck, checking for a tail all the way. Satisfied that no one was following them, Joe turned off the highway and they started climbing into the mountains. Their agile 4x4 made short work of the uneven track and they covered the 2 miles to their location without incident. Steve jumped down from the truck and looked around, "Not much to see here, Commander White. Sure we're in the right place?" Joe just smirked and walked towards some bushy vegetation, sweeping the branches to one side to reveal a door. He punched in the code on the security keypad and gestured for Steve to follow. He led Steve down a long corridor which opened out into a large room. A petty officer was waiting for them and addressed Joe,

"Commander White. The prisoner is ready for you – follow me, please." He took them through a series of passages until they reached a bank of cells. He banged twice on the door of the first cell and a moment later it was opened from the inside by a special operator. He stepped to one side to allow Joe and Steve to enter the cell and then shut the door again, remaining in the room with them. Victor Hesse was laid on a cot in the corner of the cell, but looked up at the two men to see who it was. His face creased up in an unpleasant smirk and he spoke with his strong Northern Ireland accent,

"Ahhh, I was wondering when you would show up, McGarrett. Come to rough me up a little, have you?" Steve said nothing, just staring at the man who had murdered his father. Victor was the first to break the gaze and when he did Steve finally spoke,

"We know you were in Chengou in September. I'm sure it was very nice visiting Wo Fat and his lovely bride-to-be, Daiyu Mei." Hesse's head whipped round in shock, his eyes wide. Steve knew he had hit a nerve, "Imagine if Wo Fat thought it was you who told us about his fiancée? I'm thinking he would be really quite unhappy. Now, personally I don't give a shit what happens to you," Steve paused for effect, "it would be a real shame if Wo Fat was to 'accidently' find out when you were being transported to another military facility."

The prisoner started to bluster, "You can't do that! I have rights!" Joe spoke to cut off Hesse's panicked cries,

"I'm going to ask you some questions and it would be in your best interests to answer them, don't you think?" He crouched down to Hesse's eye level and held his gaze for a minute, "Don't make me ask you twice."

Steve and Joe took turns to grill Victor about Han Ji-Woon and Dark Sun. The man had realized that his future safety depended on how well he cooperated and he readily revealed the extent of his links with the shadowy militia group. He also divulged how it was Wo Fat who had made the initial introductions and was a trusted member of Ji-Woon's inner circle. The Hesse brothers had only been tolerated because of their relationship with Wo Fat, the leader of Dark Sun intensely suspicious of 'outsiders'. Wo Fat had access to an abandoned military installation, 5 Klicks to the south of the Dark Sun camp. It was one of his favored bases of operation, the arms dealer liking the high level of security that its location afforded him. Joe had been leaning against the cell wall whilst Steve took a turn at the interrogation and it was becoming apparent that they had reached the limits of Hesse's knowledge about Dark Sun and their gun trafficking routes. He pushed himself off the cell wall and placed his hand on Steve's shoulder, "I think we're done here, Commander." Steve acknowledged him with a curt nod and turned to the prisoner,

"So, what made you think that your plan to get me to release your brother would ever have worked? The U.S. Navy doesn't negotiate with terrorists." Hesse turned to Steve,

"He was your father. Wo Fat convinced me that you would do anything to secure his safety." Steve gave him an icy stare,

"Well that didn't work out so well for Anton, did it?" Victor just glared at Steve with pure hatred,

"Go to hell, McGarrett." Steve let himself enjoy the man's anger for just a moment before turning to Joe,

"Yeah, we're done here," he glanced at Victor over his shoulder, "do be sure to give my regards to Shelburne." Hesse looked mystified at Steve's parting comment and Steve stored that little nugget of information away for another time; the Hesse brothers obviously knew nothing of his dad's investigation.

The drive back to base was quiet, Steve lost in his thoughts. Joe let him be, realizing that he needed time to deal with seeing Victor Hesse again. As soon as they parked up the truck, Joe made his way to a classified briefing with Vice Admiral Janderman. They had more intel than they ever could have hoped for and all without laying a finger on the prisoner. He gave Lt. Brown full credit, it was his initiative that led to them getting the leverage they had so badly needed.

Steve felt an overwhelming urge to get off base and clear his head and he quickly changed back into his more comfortable 'uniform' of cargo pants, tee and shirt. Grabbing his phone, he drove back along the coast road towards his house. He felt the need to go back home so he could soak up the tranquillity of the ocean from his private beach. He saw 3 missed calls from Jenna. Sighing, he let his cell connect to the truck's hands free and then called her back, "Hey, Jenna. What's up? How did it go with your source at Langley?" Jenna forced herself to react normally, Josh's life depending on how well she could lie in the next couple of minutes,

"Steve, thanks for returning my call, well . . . calls," she rambled nervously, "um, I really need your help. I'm getting close to Wo Fat, I know it. I have a source who has some information, but he'll only give it to me in person." Steve hummed in response,

"Okay, so what's the issue?" Jenna shut her eyes, hating herself for what she was about to do to a man who had done nothing but support her,

"Well, he's in Japan and he won't come to me . . . Steve, I can't do this on my own. What if the Yakuza get wind of this? I'll be all by myself on their home turf!" Steve immediately jumped in,

"Hey, hey. Relax Jenna. How sure are you? Can your source be trusted?" Jenna replied,

"I'm very sure, the Yakuza killed his wife and threatened to do the same to his child to keep him in line. They think that they have him under control but he's just biding his time until he can get his revenge. He has hard intel on Wo Fat's location – this could be the breakthrough we were looking for, Steve."

Steve clenched his jaw, God she was so believable. He forced down his anger, "That's great news, Jenna. Of course I'll come – I'm as invested in this as you. We knew there was a Japanese connection from all the evidence in my father's toolbox . . . um, normally I'd want to loop in the team but things are a bit strained right now. I could inform the Governor−"

"No, Steve," Jenna cut him off, "we can't risk this going any further until we know what we are dealing with. We don't know who to trust, your father had established that there was at least one mole."

Steve grimaced at her duplicity, "Do you not think that we should tell someone, Jenna? We might need backup?" Jenna quickly capitulated, not wanting to make Steve suspicious,

"I just don't want to risk anyone's safety, just until we know a little more. Look Steve, I don't know what's going on with you and Five-0, but what they don't know can't hurt them." Steve begged to differ but didn't reveal his true feelings,

"Okay. Can you make the arrangements and I'll square some time off with the Governor. I'll be suitably vague. I'll tell the team I'm having to do a few days of Reserve training, we're not in the middle of a case so it'll be fine." Jenna confirmed that she would sort out travel plans for them both and then cut the call.

Both parties stared at their cell phones for a moment, feeling absolutely gutted, but for different reasons. Steve called Danny as he continued to drive home, he needed to talk to a friend,

"Hey Danny. Jenna called." Danny had nothing to say to that, it was obvious from the tone of Steve's voice that she had gone through with her plan.

"Where are you, Buddy?" Steve sighed,

"Nearly home, about 15 minutes out. Meet me there?" Danny readily agreed, happy to get out of his shitty apartment for the night. Besides, he had somewhere he had to be, his brother needed him.


	22. Prior planning prevents poor performance

**Chapter 22**

Everything was coming together nicely, the different teams focusing on their respective tasks. Steve was randomly reminded of Colonel John 'Hannibal' Smith from the A-Team, when he chomped on his cigar and uttered the classic line, _"I love it when a plan comes together_." Victor Hesse would soon be off the island and in a location so secure that no one would be able to find him – not even Wo Fat with his connections in the CIA and who knew where else. The lingering threat of letting his vengeful boss think that Hesse had given up Daiyu Mei would be enough to guarantee a steady flow of intel before he was charged with all of his crimes, including the murder of John McGarrett, and served out the rest of his days in a super-max prison. He would never see the light of day again.

Sandra Kahele, the IAO Chief Investigator, had been delighted to receive the tip from Five-0 with the promise of their full cooperation. She was under pressure from her Director to clean up the leaks in the Dept. of Public Safety and this would be a high profile catch. The dirty prison officer was quickly put under discrete around-the-clock surveillance and had been observed trying to get a shift on the secure medical unit at the prison. Kono's cousin had been only too happy to oblige, coming out the deal $50 better off, as the other man had been desperate to swap their shifts. An armed prison guard was playing the part of Victor Hesse, with additional back-up provided by hand-picked HPD officers. The sting was a success, the undercover officer overpowering the surprised 'doctor' with murder on his mind. Five-0 ran the man's fingerprints and identified him as Will Ling, one of Wo Fat's most trusted bodyguards. Ling was 'persuaded' to confirm the kill back to his boss, leaving Wo Fat none the wiser that Hesse was still alive. Kahele had the prison officer in custody and he was busy selling out his equally dirty colleagues in exchange for serving out his sentence under an assumed name on the mainland. It had been an easy interrogation, the man truly terrified at the prospect of being sent to Halawa where both the other prisoners and guards would have made his life a living hell.

Steve and Chin had squeezed in a meeting with Sgt. Duke Lukela and shared their plans for Five-0 with the trustworthy man. Duke had then told the story of how John McGarrett saved his life when Duke had been lured out to the forest with his partner and was shot by a man with a grudge against Steve's father in 1983. He owed the McGarrett's a debt and was willing to help in any way that he could. Steve had been strangely affected by the story, remembering that night with startling clarity – he had been six years old at the time and told Duke it was the first time he understood what his father did every day, what he risked and that there was something more important than himself. Duke nodded sagely, grateful that HPD had been blessed with people like John McGarrett. He confirmed that Chin would be offered a promotion to lieutenant and that the announcement was imminent. Chin had been a little overwhelmed, not knowing quite what to think after all the ugliness of the past. Both Steve and Duke urged him to accept the promotion, that it was only right and reflected his service on the force. They all agreed to work on developing a closer working relationship between Five-0 and HPD, Steve citing his worries that backup might be provided just a beat too slow one day by disgruntled officers. Duke looked grave as he agreed, having seen similar situations occur during his many years on the force.

Janderman was briefing SEAL Team 9 with their CO, Commander Wade Gutches. They were to verify the intel extracted from Victor Hesse and prepare for a strike against the Dark Sun camp in North Korea – putting the dangerous militia group out of commission permanently. Han Ji-Woon was a high-value target. Although Steve was travelling to Japan, he had a nagging feeling that it wouldn't be his final destination. Han Ji-Woon had a score to settle with Steve and Wo Fat would curry favor with the fanatical militia leader if he brought Steve to North Korea. Plus, if a rescue team was sent after Steve then they would be going off his 'public' travel itinerary and be looking in the wrong place. It was agreed that the elite SEAL Team carry out discrete surveillance on both the camp and Wo Fat's bunker and not make a move until Steve's final location was confirmed. They were unfazed by the prospect, used to laying low in jungle terrain for weeks at a time if the mission required it.

Joe's top priority was having eyes on Steve at all time. Lt. Brown was grilled about the merits of different tracking systems and they discussed the risks of them being detected by a paranoid Wo Fat. The man was beyond careful, as evidenced by his ability to conduct his deadly trade right under the noses of the authorities without being caught. He would not just blindly assume that Jenna had kept her end of the bargain and would be open to the possibility that Steve may have come prepared. They knew that he used trackers on his shipments and so would have the capability to scan for tracking devices. Harry requested permission to confer with a Company contact, citing their program to develop advanced _in vivo_ tracking systems as justification. Commander White duly granted permission and Harry disappeared off to make contact, promising to return in a few hours. Joe had a second unit tail Harry and keep watch at a distance to ensure the young man's safety - Captain Brown would kill him if he let anything happen to his son and Joe was a little bit scared of Eddie, not that he would ever admit it out loud.

Jenna had been busy too, Wo Fat had called her again that night. Jenna was quick to point out that she had done what was asked of her and had convinced Steve to come with her alone and to not involve Five-0. Wo Fat conceded that indeed she had and would be rewarded with her fiancé. He had informed her of the arrangements and told her that their tickets would be delivered to her hotel room – economy class of course, it would look suspicious for the cash-strapped young lady to be forking out for pricey business class seats. A man posing as her contact would meet them at the airport and then take them to where Josh was being held. He would answer to the name Hideto Yamamoto and a photo of him would be provided along with the tickets so she could recognize him as her trusted informant. Wo Fat made sure that his lingering threat that he knew where she lived was ever present, after all it simply wouldn't do for her to start getting any ideas.

The Navy Team were busy devising a working plan to keep tabs on Steve, the tracking device to be used as a failsafe in the event that things went awry. Jenna had sent him a brief text with the flight details, they were booked on the Japan Airlines (JAL) non-stop flight to Osaka. The next available flight was in the morning, departing at 10.45 a.m. and it was a little over 10 hours flight time to the Japanese city. Steve hoped that he could keep up the pretence over such a long time, as given his current feelings about Jenna he was sorely tempted to just murder the woman in her sleep on the way. He idly speculated that he could probably do it without any of the other passengers even noticing . . .

It was agreed that surveillance would be predominantly by satellite, to avoid spooking Wo Fat or his foot soldiers by having a heavy presence in Osaka. Steve wouldn't put it past Wo Fat to be running facial recognition software on CCTV footage from around the airport, no doubt with access to military and agency databases. It ruled out sending anyone ahead to scope the area or to be there for when Steve and Jenna landed. In an operation like this they would normally just read the CIA into the mission and 'borrow' their assets, but that wasn't an option this time. Then Steve remembered Kono telling him about their cousin who was a detective at HPD. She had been gutted when he moved to Osaka after marrying a local lady from the Japanese city, as he had been one of the few people brave enough to openly support Chin when he had been accused of stealing money. Steve addressed the group, "Chin Ho Kelly and Kono Kalakaua have a cousin who was a detective at HPD and moved to Osaka. Let me check if he got a job in the Osaka police, if he did then we can organize having some local eyes on me without having to go through official channels and risking exposure. No one would look twice at an Osaka police officer patrolling outside the airport."

Joe looked pleased at the development, "That would work. Agreed, Commander – go ahead and make the arrangements via Five-0. We will have an extraction team ready to roll 10 minutes out from your location, but can't risk having them any closer than that. We might not be the only ones monitoring satellite feeds."

Steve stepped out to make the call and was delighted to learn that cousin Kelly had been snapped up by Osaka Prefectural Police and was working in the OPP Criminal Investigation Dept. He had been happy to help in any way that he could and made short work of organizing a small team of trusted uniformed and undercover officers to be on covert surveillance duty in and around the airport. They would be fully briefed before Steve and Jenna arrived.

Steve left his Naval colleagues to finalise their plans, between Joe and Eddie they were all over it and would leave nothing to chance. Harry had rung ahead to let them know that he was on his way back to base and had in his possession a prototype device that was untraceable using the standard detection systems. The only problem was that it had a very short battery life and so couldn't be activated from when Steve first landed in Oaska – they would only be able to use it in an emergency and it would transmit his location for a few hours at most. Steve was confident that they wouldn't need to use it at all, but took comfort from knowing that it would be there all the same.


	23. A name from the past

**Chapter 23**

Steve had made his way back to the Palace, as he wanted to catch up with everyone before he departed for Japan the next day. He gave a little silent prayer of thanks that the team hadn't caught a case. The Governor had pledged to try and avoid assigning anything to the Task Force for a few days, but couldn't promise that their services wouldn't be needed if a major crisis was to threaten any of his islands. However, luck had been on their side and they had remained case-free. Steve wanted to see if they had any ideas about what to do about Daiyu Mei. She was no innocent victim, unaware of her fiancé's murderous past. Hesse had been a witness to the woman playing an active role in the planning of the convoy ambush. He had divulged that she oversaw the financial side of the 'business' behind the scenes. He had also told them that if it involved money then nothing was approved without her say-so. She may have majored in law, but she was also a skilled financier and contract negotiator and Wo Fat was making full use of her considerable skills. Steve shook his head sadly, a marriage made in heaven indeed . . .

As he ran up the steps to the first floor, the Navy SEAL wondered if Chin had started to move into his old office yet. A quick glance around as he came through the big glass doors answered that question. Chin was resolutely staying put in his office and Steve wondered why that was. He resolved to get Chin moved into the master office if the man still hadn't moved by the time he was back from his Wo Fat crusade.

He walked in on the team holding a video conference with Detective Kelly, delighted to have an excuse to catch up with their favorite cousin once the business of the day had been concluded. Steve moved closer so he was in view of the camera and added his thanks to the Osaka-based detective, "Detective Kelly, I'm Steve McGarrett. I'd just like to thank you for your help with our operation."

He smiled at Steve, "Happy to help, but please call me Marlon." Steve looked surprised at his first name and the detective sighed, this was obviously not the first time he had encountered that reaction, "Blame my mother, she was a huge Marlon Brando fan. I don't mind actually, there are worse people to be named after - he was a great actor but it was his support of the civil rights movement that makes me proud of the name." Steve had laughed and they all continued to chat amicably for another hour before Marlon had to call a halt to the proceedings as his wife was expecting him home. She was in her last week of pregnancy and he had promised to fit new kitchen cupboards before the baby was born – a promise he was bitterly regretting now that he had to actually bite the bullet and do the job.

"I'd have packed my tools and come round to help, but I think I might be a bit preoccupied," said Steve. Marlon laughed,

"Yeah, Brah. You've gonna have bigger problems to worry about than my kitchen looking all new and shiny. Good luck with the op. Aloha!"

The screen went blank as Chin disconnected the video feed. He turned to Steve, "So what brings you to our humble abode?" Steve updated them on the operation and shared his concerns about the potential danger posed by Daiyu Mei. He was worried that the vengeful streak might extend to Wo Fat's wife-to-be and didn't want it to come back and bite him in the ass when he least expected it.

Kono carefully considered all of the available information, "Hmmm, I don't like the idea of her planning an unpleasant surprise for you when she finds out that her fiancé has been captured . . . or even worse, killed." She paused, "She could even just take over from where Wo Fat left off, it sounds like she is practically running the financial side of things already." Danny nodded in agreement,

"Yeah, I'm with Kono on this. We need a plan to take her down as well."

Chin and Kono worked their magic on the surface table and managed to track Ms. Mei to Shanghai. Kono updated Danny and Steve, "She used her credit card to pay for a suite at the Crown Plaza Hotel Fudan Shanghai, that's just across the road from Fudan University . . . I wonder why she's there . . . give me a sec . . . oh look, her mother is receiving an award from the university."

Chin cut in, "When's the Awards Ceremony?" Kono kept reading through the university bulletin,

"Thursday at 4 p.m. That's just under a week away, she must have gone a few days early – probably to catch up with friends from her university days, she studied there too, right?" Steve frowned, his forehead creased in concentration,

"I can't imagine that she has security measures in place, Wo Fat has kept her very well-hidden under the radar. Victor Hesse said that he didn't think anyone else had even met her apart from him. He only became aware of her existence in September and that was because of Hesse's need to meet with Wo Fat at very short notice and his boss was already at Ms. Mei's property in China – they only had 2 days to plan the attack on our convoy before Hesse was boarding a Chinese cargo ship to Oahu. I think Wo Fat always intended to dispose of Hesse once he had served his purpose, thus all knowledge of his fiancée would die with him." Danny chipped in,

"I think you're right. They have no reason to think that anyone would ever link her to Wo Fat and his organization. That leaves this woman completely free to live her respectable life, complete with prestigious award ceremonies for her mother and fancy government soirées for her father." Steve just stared at Danny,

"Soirée? _Really_ , Danny?" The detective huffed indignantly,

"What? It means 'fancy evening affair' if you must know. So, I like to expand my vocabulary - we're not all Neanderthals like you." The cousins hid their smiles and Chin decided to put his two cents in,

"We could easily get to Shanghai in time for the ceremony. Scope it out, pick her up and bring her back to Hawaii?" Steve shook his head,

"Oh what grounds? We have just established how respectable she is and that her parents have some serious clout." He sighed in frustration, "You could be hit with kidnapping charges if you tried to bring her in against her will. Governor Denning's not gonna like it if you cause an international incident."

Kono had been thinking while Steve was speaking, "What if we made her come to us?" They all looked at her.

"How so?" inquired Danny.

"Well, the operation to capture or kill Wo Fat should be all over by then and we know that Wo Fat has a source in the CIA. One of us could go to Shanghai and pretend to be from some super-secret CIA spy thingy− "

Steve tried to hide his smile as he cut in, "The CIA's Clandestine Service or their Special Activities Division?" Kono glared at him for the interruption,

"Yeah, that. We could show her photos of Wo Fat's capture and tell her that he's being held in a secure location on Oahu by the Navy. We could then say that we have been working with Wo Fat and he had a failsafe in place and in the event of his capture, we were to contact her and help her secure his release . . . I mean, she's completely under the radar and no one knows about her, she's got to think the order came directly from her fiancé."

Chin pointed out a potential flaw in the plan, "But what if he's killed evading capture?" Kono shot Steve a pointed look,

"Bossman here is just going to have to refrain from shooting him in the face. Get him somewhere less visible. He doesn't have to look awake for the photos, we can say he was under sedation for the transfer so he didn't know where he was taken. That's plausible enough – it's probably SOP for special ops." Steve nodded slowly, mulling it over,

"It could work. She would come back with you to Oahu willingly then. I'm betting if we could get hold of her cell phone and laptop before you made contact and planted bugs in them, then we could trace the key players that she contacts as soon as she hears her fiancé is in trouble – we'd get the chance to take them all out." Then he looked worried, "I don't know, it's just so risky. One slip from whoever goes over to Shanghai and it all falls apart. What if she has seen pictures of everyone from Five-0, I wouldn't put it past Wo Fat to have shared all his intel on us with Ms. Mei. Plus the CIA works in a very particular way, it would be a stretch for anyone not familiar with how they work to pull it off." Kono looked crushed, she had been sure that it was a good idea. Steve noticed her dismay and moved to reassure the young rookie,

"Hey, Kono – the premise is sound, I like your thinking. We just need to find someone to play the part of the CIA double agent." Danny spoke,

"From what you just said, it sounds like the best person to do this would be an actual CIA special operator. They can't all be on the take . . . there must be someone we could approach?" Steve processed Danny's words,

"Yeah, I do know someone actually. I worked with her on a joint Navy-SAD special op. Highly classified. She works out of China as well, it's perfect."

"What's her name?" asked Chin.

"CIA Agent Greer."


	24. Smooth Dog

**Chapter 24**

Steve provided some context for his team, "Gabrielle Greer - she has high-level clearance and works on special ops primarily out of Asia now, but we met on a mission in North Africa right after I got my trident. She tried to recruit me into the CIA, but I declined – I just can't see myself ever working for the Company." Steve noticed Danny's scowl and remembered the man's rant about using code words instead of the actual word for something, "Sorry, Danno. _The CIA_."

"How hard was that, _Steven_." Danny snarked back, "So, Gabrielle you say, that's a lovely name." He caught Steve's uncharacteristically sheepish face and his sharp mind quickly put two and two together, "Oh man, you two had some Barry White time, didn't you? On a bloody classified mission, no less! And here I was thinking your SEAL nickname of Smooth Dog was actually ironic." He waved his hands to emphasize his point, "She still talking to you? You hooked up with Catherine after that." Steve was starting to develop his 'aneurysm' face,

"You're making it sound like I jump into bed with anyone who happens to be handy . . . it just happened, alright. We both had a nice time and then moved on. It was much later when I started dating Catherine." Danny was still waiting for an answer to his first question and raised an eyebrow at Steve. Steve answered with a put-upon sigh, "Yes, Daniel. She's still talking to me. I worked with her CIA partner quite recently, Tom Hennessy. He's a good man, he helped me track down the Hesse brothers. We met up for dinner when I was in Shanghai and Gabrielle came as well – it was nice."

" _Nice_?" Steve rolled his eyes,

"Yeah – nice," he fished out his cell and scrolled through his photos, "here, we got the waitress to take a photo of us all after the meal." The team gathered around to look. Danny piped up,

"God, it's so unfair – she's absolutely gorgeous. What, was she a model before she became a super-secret kick-ass CIA agent? Then you go and bag the delectable Lt. Rollins. Some guys get all the luck." Steve laughed out loud,

"What and Rachel wasn't a total catch?"

Kono squeezed herself in between the two men and slung her arms over both their shoulders, "Just face it, we're all gorgeous – the most attractive Task Force in the history of policing - we can snare ourselves whoever we want!" At that, Chin raised his eyebrows,

"And just who would you be snaring, Kono? Do I need to meet him, make sure he's good enough for you?" Kono gave a dramatic sign and threw up her arms,

"Oh my God, Chin. It's not the 1950s – you don't need to be giving every man I meet 'the talk'."

"Aha!" her over-protective cousin pronounced in triumph, "so you _are_ meeting men. Which men? One man in particular? Anyone I know?" At this Kono caved and spilled the beans,

"I might as well tell you. You're only going to find out anyway. I've had a couple of dates with Charlie." They all tried to think who she meant and Danny was the first to connect the dots,

"Charlie Fong, right?" he smiled, "I thought you were spending a lot of time down in the HPD forensics lab." Steve chipped in,

"Charlie's a good man. I don't think you need to go threatening him with your shotgun, Chin . . . besides, Charlie has the means to analyze any evidence you leave behind and have you banged to rights." Chin pouted slightly,

"I suppose he'll do . . ." he looked straight at Kono, "but if he messes you around then I can't promise not to bring out my shotgun." With Kono's love life all sorted they packed up for the night, Steve agreeing to contact Agent Greer and see if she would take part in their little ruse.

Steve drove home, mentally calculating the time in China. Greer had been based in Nantong, a suburb of Shanghai, but he didn't know if she was still there. The Shanghai area was 18 hours ahead, Steve remembering the time difference from previous missions. He had got so used to converting between all the time zones around the world that it came automatically to him now. He worked out that it would be about 11 hundred hours the next day, hopefully she would be able to answer her cell and not be busy on a case. He connected the call via his Bluetooth and waited for Greer to answer, which she did after a few rings, "Greer."

Steve responded to her clipped greeting, realizing that he answered his cell in exactly the same way, "Gabrielle, how's my favorite CIA agent?" Greer smiled, recognizing his voice,

"Now that's a lie, I know for a fact that I've been replaced as your favorite agent ever since Tom found you that intel on the Hesse brothers." Steve smirked,

"Okay, you got me there – how's my equal-favorite agent? I have a little favor to ask, how do you fancy going undercover as a CIA agent?" She paused, mystified,

"But I _am_ a CIA agent, Steve?"

Steve proceeded to lay out his plan and Greer listened carefully, chipping in as needed. She questioned him about his assertion that Wo Fat had a high-level mole in the CIA, most likely from within the SAD, "What evidence have you got? How can you be sure that details of the extraction were leaked, maybe he just had good security and got the better of the Grab Team? We're not infallible, maybe it was a botched operation?" Steve shook his head as he answered,

"No, it's more than that. He's been able to stay under the radar and one step ahead for years, no one's that lucky. He's got an inside source, one high up enough to have knowledge of clandestine missions. He told my Dad he had contacts in the CIA in a meeting with him and the Governor." Greer sighed,

"Okay, so let's say that he has a mole – surely this Daiyu Mei is going to know who it is? Why wouldn't they be getting in touch with her?" she huffed, "she's going to see me coming from a mile away."

Steve had to concede that Gabrielle had a point, "Okay, what do you suggest?" Greer deliberated the problem for a minute or two,

"I suppose it's possible that I could have been contacted by the mole without knowing their identity. If they're as well-connected as you suspect then they're going to be paranoid about anyone being able to give them up. No honor among thieves and all that . . ." She sighed, "Okay, I'm in. My current case is a bust anyway, we were given dodgy intel and I've just wasted 2 months of my life that I'm never gonna get back. I was in Nantong, but can't go back there – my safe house was compromised. I had to relocate to a different place, but it's a dump. It'll be nice to check into an upmarket hotel like the Crown Plaza and make ample use of the spa treatments and pool. I'll use an assumed name. I suppose you want me to bug all her electronic equipment so you can track who she contacts?" Steve smiled, she really did know him well,

"You know I do. Have you got what you need?" Greer snorted,

"Oh pur-leese, you'd kill to get your hands on the gadgets that I have at my disposal. You're paying the hotel bill by the way – I'm guessing you don't want me telling by bosses about this little side mission. One of them could be the mole for all we know."

"Yeah, don't tell anyone but Tom, I'll feel better at least one person over there knowing what you're doing and then he can have your six if needed. I owe you, Gabrielle – rack up whatever charges you like, the Navy will foot the bill. If this all goes to plan we'll both be back on Oahu in a few days and I'll dazzle you with my world-famous grilling skills. I'll host a cook out at my place and you can meet the Five-0 team," he added as an afterthought, "I'll make sure Admiral Janderman squares this away with your superiors – I don't want you to catch any flak for this." Her face lit up with a smug little smile,

"Hell no, there won't be blowback. Quite the opposite in fact - we've been after Wo Fat and his merry band of gun runners for years. They'll be giving me a promotion for this." Steve was pleased to hear this,

"I hope so - you deserve it, Gabrielle." She blushed a little,

"Aw shucks, you say the nicest things. Right, enough chit-chat, I've got some work to be getting on with if we're going to pull this off . . ." and with that she cut the connection. She felt a little bit wistful after speaking with her ex-lover. Greer would have liked for it to have led to something more substantial, but Steve was too busy chasing his next promotion. After she had heard on the grapevine that Steve and Catherine were an item she had been hurt, wasn't she good enough for him? Gabrielle was used to getting what she wanted and so the perceived 'rejection' had stung. So much so that she had made a nasty little dig at Steve's inability to commit when she had encountered Catherine when they were both stationed at the same Naval base for a joint mission. She flushed at the memory, she had been a bitch and should probably apologize to Catherine if she saw her again - if only to stop Steve thinking badly of her.

Her mind went back to the dinner with Steve and Tom in Shanghai, she and Steve had been comfortable with each other without it being awkward and it had been a very nice evening. It made her think that Catherine can't have told Steve about their little 'chat' and she was relieved. During dinner, she had been ever so slightly flirting with Tom to see if Steve took the bait. Unfortunately he was either completely oblivious or deliberately refusing to play her game - Gabrielle just couldn't tell which. She smiled to herself, this mission couldn't have come at a better time; she was actively chasing her next promotion and the high-profile nature of their target meant that she would be very much in the spotlight when it came to being offered her next career opportunity. Plus, it had a nice little side benefit of working more closely with Steve. She wondered if she could get him to see what he was missing during the promised cook out at his house when this was all over.


	25. Mission Impossible

**Chapter 25**

Steve attended a final briefing at zero six hundred hours. Eddie had already updated the Admiral on the plan to reel in Daiyu Mei and Janderman was impressed with Five-0's resourcefulness and connections. He had readily agreed to justify Agent Greer's part in the mission to her superiors when the time came, pushing it up the chain of command if he encountered any resistance. You didn't get to be a 3 star Admiral without knowing something about inter-agency 'cooperation', where a little bit of subtle bullying was viewed as a perfectly reasonable tactic.

Steve then had a brief stop at the medical center, where he was given a thorough once-over to confirm his fitness for the mission. The doctor carefully inserted the tracking device, which Harry had procured, under the skin in his armpit. The natural folds of skin hid the injection site and the device was nicely tucked away, safe from potential strike points. Steve rather hoped that there wouldn't be too much striking going on, but was prepared to do whatever it took to bring down his nemesis. Harry had seen him off, unable to completely hide his nervousness. He would be in charge of the surveillance throughout the operation and reassured Steve that they would be able to activate the tracking device remotely if they no longer had eyes on him for any reason. The young officer would also be helping Five-0 to monitor the bugs once they were planted in Daiyu Mei's devices, tracing her attempts to contact anyone in Wo Fat's inner circle. Joe and Eddie would duly dispatch special operators to round them up once Harry pinpointed their locations. The Navy had Teams on stand-by all over the world so they could coordinate the strikes to take place simultaneously, their best chance of catching the main players off guard.

Steve had called his former team on his way to the airport and tried to say what he really meant for a change, instead of keeping his feelings bottled up. It has been quite an emotional call for everyone involved and when it was over Kono had turned to her teammates and viciously stated, "If anything happens to him, Jenna's a dead woman." She had been completely serious and Danny and Chin had exchanged a look that conveyed their silent agreement to help Kono bury the body.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The flight was operated by Japan Airlines and Steve made his way to Terminal 1 at Honolulu International Airport. He didn't see Jenna and so waited just before security until she arrived. About 10 minutes later, she breathlessly rushed up to him, "Sorry, my taxi was late picking me up from the hotel. Thanks for this Steve, I can't tell you how much I appreciate you coming with me." She handed over his ticket and jerked her head towards security, "Shall we?" Steve took the ticket and forced a smile,

"Yeah, let's get this show on the road."

They had made small talk, but it felt awkward and stilted – neither one of them comfortable with the deception but trying to not let their true feelings show. Steve reflected on what would have happened had he not been forewarned about Jenna's ploy. He would have been like a lamb to the slaughter, not realizing the danger he was in until it was too late. The Navy SEAL had been relieved when Jenna had indicated that she was going to try and get some sleep as she hadn't slept well the night before. He'd thought, _"Yeah, that would be your guilty conscience keeping you up,"_ but he forced out a smile and told her to go ahead. They agreed to go over the plan when she had woken from her nap. Jenna was out for a few hours before she started to stir. When she was fully awake Steve addressed her, "Right, do we know where we're meeting your source and his name? He's got to be nervous about being seen with us?" Jenna nodded in agreement,

"Yeah, his name's Hideto Yamamoto. He's really jumpy and paranoid since his wife was killed. He doesn't want to risk being seen in public with us. I have a burner phone and have only given the number to Hideto. When we come out of the arrivals hall, we have to go and wait at the taxi rank that's right outside the main exit. He's going to wait out of sight, but will have eyes on the taxi rank. When he sees us there, he'll ring me and give us instructions."

"Okay, sounds like a plan." He got up from his seat, "I'm just gonna hit the head and stretch my legs." Steve stretched out and cracked his back, his long legs cramped from the economy class seats. He made his way to the toilets and once safely hidden from prying eyes, he quickly jotted down some notes on a scrap of paper. He also wrote down the number for Jenna's burner phone, which he had carefully extracted from her bag when she was fast asleep; he'd had to choose the right time, as he was reasonably certain that the passenger immediately behind him was one of Wo Fat's goons. He had been looking out for one or more of them before they even boarded, suspecting that the overly cautious arms dealer wouldn't leave anything to chance. The man would want eyes and ears on them throughout the flight, in case Jenna decided to come clean and warn Steve about the trap. The 'fake' passenger had got up to use the facilities just once when Jenna was asleep, but that was all the time that Steve needed to slip the cell out of her bag and memorize the number.

Steve exited the tiny toilet and, as he made his way back to his seat, he let the piece of paper drop into the lap of a lady sitting in an aisle seat a few rows behind them. She quickly covered it with her coat but otherwise didn't react at all. Steve kept walking and complained bitterly as he retook his seat, "These seats are not made for tall people. It's alright for you, you're positively tiny."

Jenna smiled, "Oh stop moaning, we've only got an hour left. That reminds me, I want to finish watching my movie." Steve waved his hand,

"Yeah, sure. Go ahead. We can't do anything more until Mr. Yamamoto makes contact anyway."

Chin had devised a way for Steve to be able to pass on any information that he could get out of Jenna during the flight. They had discussed Steve having a burner phone that he could later dump, but decided that it was too risky. Jenna, Wo Fat's people and even the airport CCTV would be watching his every move and the discovery of furtive texts from a burner phone could jeopardise the whole operation. So Chin had scanned the passenger list and found someone they knew, she was the owner of a jewellery store that had been robbed a few months previously. Five-0 had made short work of capturing the perps and returning the stolen goods and the owner had been very grateful. She had even brought in a big box of coco puffs from Liliha Bakery to the Palace and explained that if she had been forced to make another insurance claim then the increased premiums could have put her out of business. She had been delighted when Chin had called to ask for her help and couldn't agree quickly enough, saying it sounded like something out of a Mission Impossible movie. They had studied the seating plan and made sure to select her an aisle seat that was between Steve and the toilets. If Steve did pass on any intel, she was to call Chin the minute she disembarked and was in the Terminal building.

The Captain's announcement to the cabin crew to prepare the cabin for landing had everyone on the flight rushing for a last minute toilet trip, stuffing bigger bags back into overhead lockers and fastening their seatbelts. Steve addressed Jenna, "It's gonna be fine Jenna. We'll meet this man, get the intel and then plan our next steps." Jenna had booked them two rooms at a nearby hotel for the night. They had open return tickets and so could arrange their return flight to suit their plans. Steve wasn't too worried – he fully anticipated coming home on military transport with Wo Fat in either a coffin or a cage.


	26. The trap is primed

**Chapter 26**

A slight breeze flapped at Steve's shirt, stopping him from becoming too warm. It was late afternoon in Osaka and a busy time at the airport. He stood with Jenna at the taxi rank, a large line in front of them. Jenna had pulled out her cell phone so she was ready and waiting for the call from her contact. He surely couldn't miss them, they stood out like a sore thumb – Steve towering over everyone around him and Jenna with her lily-white pale skin. Steve touched her arm, "He'll call. Just give him a minute. He's probably checking us out." In the meantime, he had been casually noting everyone around them. 'Fake' passenger was nowhere to be seen, presumably because Wo Fat would have no further need for the man now that Steve and Jenna were on his turf. He noticed a few uniformed police officers and a patrol car drive slowly by, but none of them paid him any attention. He was willing to bet that at least one person already in the line was an undercover officer, Steve having been able to communicate that they would be making their way to the taxi rank via the note he wrote on the plane. Steve was brought out of his reverie by Jenna's burner phone ringing. She snatched it up and accepted the call, listening to whoever was on the other end of the phone. She disconnected the call without having said a word.

"He's sending me a text now with more details". She looked at the phone impatiently, willing it to ping. When the message came through, she quickly opened it and showed Steve. It was the details for a white delivery van, including the plate number. Jenna repeated what she had been told on the phone, "We're to find this van in North Parking Structure 1, Level 3F." While Jenna was distracted trying to locate the parking garage on her mini map of the airport, Steve jotted down the plate number of the van onto a tiny scrap of paper and dropped it at his feet. He hoped that one of the undercovers would notice and pick it up. Jenna looked up, "Ah, it's just over this crossing and then to our left." She set off with Steve in tow. An older lady immediately in front of them in the line casually stepped onto the piece of paper and then waited for them to move out of sight before she picked it up. She gestured for the person behind her to take her place and moved away where it was more private before calling in the plate number to Marlon Kelly.

Joe White had arranged for Chin to come onto base for the duration of the operation, not wanting any delays in transmitting vital information. They already had a lock on Jenna's burner, thanks to the phone call from the jewellery store owner. She had been so excited to help and Chin had patiently listened to her enthusiastic recapping of the events and agreed that she could tell all her friends about her 'Mission Impossible' experience, but not until she arrived back on Oahu the following week. Then the call came through from Marlon Kelly with the plate number, which he had run to give him the full details of the corresponding vehicle. Harry was overseeing the satellite imaging, and was currently homing in on the main exit out of the airport. They hadn't risked hacking the city's CCTV, as if the breach was detected then this could blow the op - the Yakuza literally had eyes and ears everywhere in their main bases of operation. Harry scanned the flow of vehicles travelling out of the airport terminal - there were white delivery vans everywhere, easily the most common vehicle on the road. He was very glad of the heads-up regarding the number plate, although he did have the location of Jenna's burner phone to go off as well.

Steve and Jenna took the lift up to level 3F – the nameplate on the lift wall proclaiming it to be for 'Reserved Parking'. Steve came out of the lift ahead of Jenna, automatically scanning the area for threats. Jenna tried to control her nervous tension, but was starting to breathe too rapidly. Steve noticed and turn back to her, his protective instinct kicking in, "Hey, it's okay. Steady breaths in and out. I'm not gonna let anything happen to you." He continued his recon of the parking structure, but it was almost empty and there was nothing to raise his suspicion. It was easy enough to locate the van as it was one of only about 20 vehicles on the whole level. They approached it cautiously, Steve dropping to the floor to visually inspect the undercarriage. He gingerly tried the driver's door and it was unlocked, as were all of the doors. The van was completely empty. Steve picked the keys for the van off the driver's seat and climbed in behind the wheel, Jenna sat beside him and asked,

"What now?" Steve shrugged.

"Your man will be ringing any minute, he'll give us a location and probably meet us there. It makes sense, that way he won't risk being seen leaving the airport with us. There's too much CCTV." Sure enough, the burner phone pinged and Jenna opened the text message and instructed Steve,

"Open the glove compartment, there's a GPS – it's already programmed with the address." Steve flipped it open and removed the navigation device. It took a minute to blink into life and then came up with a destination – he didn't recognise it and Jenna had no idea where it was either, despite having researched the area around Osaka before she arrived. They were both completely distracted by the GPS device and so were startled by a rap on the van window and Jenna gave out a little shriek at the sudden interruption. Steve lowered the window and the man who had knocked on the window held out his hand,

"The burner phone. Give it to me, if you please." Steve nodded at Jenna and she leaned over and handed it to the man. The man then swiftly made his way across to another white van and set off out of the parking structure. Steve watched him drive off and then cracked up the engine and they pulled out of their parking space, the GPS predicting that they would reach their destination in 55 minutes. There was a swipe card in the glove box and Jenna handed it to Steve to open the barrier at the exit. The first few miles were slow, the heavy early evening traffic snarling them up. The expected time of arrival steadily increased, the longer they were sat in traffic. The Navy SEAL usually enjoyed visiting Japan, but the circumstances of this visit were hardly conducive to a relaxed sightseeing atmosphere. The slow progress was becoming frustrating, the operator in him just wanting to get to on with the mission. He grumped,

"Mr. Yamamoto must've been lucky enough to have driven this to the airport and programmed it when the traffic was light, navigation systems remember traffic flow from their last journey."

Jenna was on edge as well, torn between the joy of seeing Josh and the guilt of betraying her Five-0 friends, "He probably parked it up last night." She sighed, "He'd better let us drive this van back to the airport or we're going to have a hell of a long walk." Steve chuckled despite his bad mood,

"If his intel is that good, we might not be back at the airport for a few days. If we can verify the information and pass on a credible lead on his location, then people are gonna act on it – the world and his wife want to take down this bastard." Jenna nodded in agreement, glad that they finally seemed to be making better progress as the traffic started to ease. They soon cleared the outer suburbs and were now only 10 minutes from their destination.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Harry was sat in the command room, monitoring the progress of the van via his satellite feed. It had been easy enough to pick up as it left the airport parking structure, knowing exactly what he needed to find. He was also tracking the location of Jenna's burner phone, wanting to know immediately if it stopped being co-located with the van. Other Naval Intelligence personnel were assisting the lieutenant and multiple sets of eyes on the bank of screens allowed all the vehicles around the van to be monitored; one of his team was quick to point out that an identical white van had pulled out of the same parking garage less than a minute later. Recognizing that one of the vans would be a decoy, they were tracking both vehicles until they could get a clear view of the license plates. When the lead van happened to be the first in line at the next main set of lights, he got a clear view of the plate and smirked – it was just as they thought, Wo Fat's people had switched the burner phone so it was being transported in another identical van.

Another tech was in constant communication with the extraction team, keeping their location exactly 10 minutes out at all times. Any closer was too risky, as Wo Fat might also be monitoring who else was following the van and as it moved into less sparsely populated areas then the risk of discovery increased. Harry noted that the vehicle had slowed its speed as it approached a large industrial area. He alerted his colleagues, "Look sharp, could be show time." He waved Joe White over, "Commander, I think the van is stopping."

One of the techs spoke up, "There's a helo round the back of one of the warehouses, I'll keep watch for any movement."

Joe White scanned the screens, "No sign of anyone out in the open but we don't know how many are inside the warehouse."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Steve pulled up in front of a large warehouse and double checked the GPS, "Yep, this is it. Let's see if Mr. Yamamoto shows." Jenna got out of the van. She looked around but there was no one in sight. A car was parked down the side of the warehouse, but it was empty. Suddenly, the access door on the back wall of the warehouse swung open and Hideto Yamamoto walked briskly over to their van. He pulled Jenna into a hug,

"Thank you for coming. I couldn't risk telling you this over the phone," he glanced over at Steve, "I see you brought a friend." Steve stepped forward,

"I'm Steve McGarrett of the Five-0 Task Force, I've been working with Jenna on tracking down Wo Fat. I believe he has taken a loved one from all of us." Hideto nodded gravely,

"I overheard a conversation between my bosses. Wo Fat will be paying them a visit next week, he wants to personally oversee a particularly valuable shipment coming in from China," he waved his arm towards the warehouse, "one of my jobs is to monitor this warehouse, check no one has been paying it special interest. I think it's going to be shipped into here at some point." He started walking back to the open door, "Come on, I'll show you the shipping manifest – you'll be interested in the 'shipment' due in on Tuesday. There's no one here but me tonight, that's why I got you to come out here instead of trying to meet you at the airport. You can look over the place and see what you need to set up a sting, catch all the high levels players together and then get me into witness protection with my daughter, somewhere far away from here."

Steve had to give it to the man, he was very convincing. He shut his eyes in a silent prayer and hoped that his team had eyes on him before replying, "Copy that, Mr. Yamamoto. Lead the way." They followed him into the warehouse, which was empty just like he had told them. He walked over to some empty crates and picked up a folder, passing it over to Jenna,

"These are the shipping logs, take a look on page 5." As she flipped over the pages, Steve could sense the presence of other people behind them – the hairs on the back of his neck standing up as he fought his natural instinct to react, take cover and start shooting; not that could have done much of that without his weapon. He waited for the inevitable 'reveal' and wasn't kept waiting long.


	27. The trap is sprung

**Chapter 27**

"Let me see your hands, turn around slowly."

Steve whipped around, feigning shock, and was faced with three heavily armed men who looked to be Yakuza. The man who had spoken was sharply dressed and oozed confidence, no doubt a high level member of the criminal organization, "Hands if you please, Commander."

Steve compiled, he had no other choice in the face of such firepower. He glanced over to Jenna and saw she was just standing there, not looking in the least bit surprised. He let the feelings of betrayal show on his face, not having to fake the strength of his feelings in that department, his voice dripping with venom, "What the hell's going on? Jenna, what have you done?" Jenna looked devastated, unable to meet his glare. The Yakuza man replied for her, clearly in charge of the situation,

"Ms. Kaye was kind enough to assist us in ensuring your presence here. My boss would like to have a polite conversation with you, Commander." Steve glared at the man, raw anger radiating off him in waves,

"He could have just called, invited me to dinner." The men all sniggered, finding that highly amusing.

"Well, I think that he prefers this version of events," he said as he turned slightly to face Jenna, "he also asked me to pass on his best regards Ms. Kaye and that he hopes you enjoy being reunited with your fiancé." He lightly squeezed the trigger and shot Jenna center-mass, square in her chest.

Steve cried out in anguish and ran over to her, catching her fall and slowly lowering the stricken woman to the warehouse floor. She grasped his arm, eyes wide with shock. Her wheezing breaths filled the silent warehouse, echoing off the walls. Steve held her in his arms and whispered into her ear, "I'll do all I can to bring Josh home," Steve turned to the men and spoke with absolute conviction, his voice low and deadly, "you bastards, I'm gonna kill every last one of you." The main Yakuza man's mouth twisted into a cruel smile,

"Oh, I doubt that very much, Commander." Steve realized too late that Hideto had stepped up behind him, swiftly injecting him with something. Steve blinked as his vision blurred before his legs gave out and he collapsed next to Jenna, still holding her limp hand in his. The man gestured in Jenna's direction and addressed Hideto, "Get rid of the body, clean this mess up."

Hideto nodded and stayed behind while the other men lifted up Steve between them and left the warehouse.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

"We've got movement," barked out Harry, "three men carrying something . . . give me a minute," he adjusted the settings and focused on the men, "they're carrying Commander McGarrett, Sir. I haven't got a visual on Jenna Kaye."

Joe stared at the screen from behind Harry's chair watching as the Yazuka men carried Steve over to the van and threw him in the back, then drove the short distance around the back of the warehouse to the waiting helicopter. Two of them struggled to get Steve into the chopper, but finally managed when the third man stepped up to help. A minute later the rotor began to turn and the helicopter rose up from the ground, banked to the right and took flight with Steve and the men aboard. "Bird in the air, Sir," reported Harry, he turned to Joe, "what about the extraction team, Sir? Do we send them in?" Joe confirmed the order,

"Roger that, send them the location of the warehouse. Advise them that the Commander is no longer at the location. Unknown number of tangoes remaining. No visual on Jenna Kaye."

Harry continued to track the helicopter while Joe had eyes on the incoming extraction team as they arrived at the location. The SEAL Team cautiously cleared the area surrounding the warehouse before confirming the number of people inside the warehouse with thermal imaging. Satisfied that there were only two people inside, they breached. The live feed from their helmet cams was being streamed onto the screens in the command room and Joe anxiously tracked their movements, but was also kept abreast of events via comms. He listened intently to the concise situation report and cursed, "Shit, Kaye is down. One tango has been neutralised. They're continuing to clear the warehouse, no sign of further hostiles." The Team leader barked out another sitrep and Joe flicked on his mic and gave orders for two members of the Team to proceed immediately with the injured woman to Takatsuki Red Cross Hospital. The others were to stay behind, secure any evidence they could find and then remove all traces of them having ever been at the warehouse, including the body of the dead Yakuza man.

He updated everyone in the command room, "Jenna Kaye was shot once in the chest. She's alive, but barely. The Team medic is working on her now. Takatsuki hospital is 15 minutes out, it's Red Cross so they will be familiar with the military. Excuse me while I clear this with Admiral Janderman." He promptly left the room to contact the Admiral for his assistance with their Japanese counterparts to keep Jenna's admittance to the hospital under the radar. The last thing they wanted was for Wo Fat to hear of their presence at the warehouse; they needed him to think that no one knew what he was doing.

Lt. Brown was totally focused on his task, tracking the helo as it flew towards the coastline. He frowned and conferred with his colleagues, one of them pointing to a private airstrip about 15 minutes flying time away if they extrapolated the helicopter's current trajectory. Harry gave them the order to check it out. Within minutes, they had eyes on the air field and were collating tail numbers from all of the planes on the ground.

They passed these onto Chin, who already had Kono and Danny at Five-0 HQ tasked with identifying who owned the helicopter that was currently holding their former boss. Kono worked quickly and soon identified that the helicopter was owned by what was looking to be a shell company. Closer inspection had uncovered that the corporation didn't have any obvious active business operations or significant assets, which was very typical when operating illegitimately with the sole aim of hiding the real business ownership from law enforcement. A smile started to creep over her face as she typed, "You can run but you can't hide . . . aha, well whaddya know – recognize that name, Danny?" Danny leaned over and scanned the information that Kono had brought up,

"Well well, would you look at that - it's none other than our old friend and Yakuza Oyabun, Hiro Noshimuri." Danny gave Kono a high five, "Nice catch, Rookie!"

Chin had called them again to ask Kono to check the registration numbers of the private planes and soon the details pinged up on the surface table. Danny instructed Kono to cross-check them against the same shell company. It took a few minutes but she found a match, "Here, tail number JA8075, it's an Embraer Legacy 600 – registered in Japan," she glanced over to Danny, "it's one of the bigger private jets and has a pretty long range on a single tank of jet fuel - several hours of flight time." She paused as a look of concern flashed across her face, "It would easily make it to even the most remote part of North Korea."


	28. Decoy plane

**Chapter 28**

The helo gently touched down at the private airstrip, home to a number of exclusive private jets owned by rich businessmen and the odd celebrity. A waiting pick-up drove up to the landing site and four Yazuka soldiers jumped out and make short work of transferring the unconscious commander onto the bed of the truck. One man remained in the back with Steve and banged on the back of the cab to indicate that they could set off. The truck drove the short distance to the plane, pulling up right next to the aircraft steps. More men were waiting at the plane and quickly pulled Steve's prone form out of the truck and manhandled him up the narrow steps of the jet.

Wo Fat was seated in one of the sumptuous seats and let a nasty smile of satisfaction play on his lips as he watched Steve being roughly dumped across the two seats opposite him. The unconscious man didn't stir, completely out for the count from the drug. He signalled to his trusted aide, Pao Dan, to pat Steve down. It was soon confirmed that their prisoner didn't have anything on his person. He waved his hand at Pao, "Do you have the Commander and Ms. Kaye's personal belongings from the van?" Pao nodded in the affirmative. Wo Fat continued with his orders, "Excellent, keep the cell phones powered up and fully charged. Pass them onto our associates so that the phones 'travel' across to Sapporo and then leave them in a suitably obscure location in 3 days time, along with their wallets and passports to be 'found'. By the time his team know he's missing and start tracking his phone they will be so far off the trail that it won't just be cold, it will be positively frigid. That is, if he even has a team – I'm sure the fallout from the revealing photographs will have been spectacular. Detective Williams seems to be most unstable and will have taken the betrayal very badly."

Wo Fat then clicked his fingers at one of the other Yakuza men and instructed him to check Steve for transmitting devices, "I highly doubt he came that prepared, but you can't be too careful." Once it was confirmed that there was nothing on or even in Steve's person, Wo Fat sat back with a satisfied smile and gave the order to prepare for take off. The smartly-dressed Yakuza man and his associates joined them for the flight and Wo Fat congratulated them on a job well done, just nodding impassively when he was told that Jenna Kaye was dead and that their man at the warehouse was disposing of the evidence. The arms dealer settled back into his seat and thought about a suitable reward for his Osaka-based associates. They had done very well indeed and rewarding loyalty was an effective business strategy.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chin relayed the information about the private jet back to Harry. The younger man nodded and quickly checked the flight plan for the plane, which would have been filed with the Japanese Civil Aviation Bureau office for the Osaka region. He explained how the JCAB operated a little differently compared to most other countries. If you didn't contact them to confirm that you had arrived by the ETA that was filed on your flight plan then they would call the arrival airport and if you were not there, a full-blown search and rescue would be initiated. Wo Fat wouldn't want to draw any unwelcome attention and so would have been very careful with his flight plan. Harry was able to bring up the details logged for JA8075, "The destination is Sapporo, that's the capital of the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido. Flight time is 1 hour 45 minutes." Almost immediately after speaking, Harry's attention was fully occupied by the helicopter arriving at the private airstrip. They all watched as Steve was transported from the helo and onto the plane. One of the techs spoke up,

"Sir, the tail number is different. JA8075 is taking off now." Joe stepped up and checked the screens,

"They must be sending a decoy plane, in case we looked into Noshimuri's shell companies, found the plane and searched for flight plans." Commander White addressed the tech, "What's the tail number of the jet with Commander McGarrett?" The tech zoomed in on the plane,

"JA7563, Sir. It's a Gulfstream G550, registered in Japan . . . no flight plan has been filed for this jet, Sir."

Harry turned his attention back to this screens, watching for movement. He didn't even need to be that patient, as less than 5 minutes later the luxurious plane slowly taxied to the runway then lined up for take off and accelerated along the runway until it was airborne.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Steve remained completely unconscious for the entirety of the flight, oblivious to the rather rough touchdown at the poorly-maintained landing strip. The pilot cursed as they taxied to a halt, hoping that there had been no damage to the landing gear. He double-checked that the plane's transponder was still disabled and then turned off the override to allow the crew to open the jet's door and drop the steps onto the pitted concrete. They had a welcoming committee in the shape of three battered jeeps, each one containing a driver. Steve was picked up and awkwardly carried down the steps and thrown into the back of the nearest jeep. The other men took their seats and they set off in convoy, slowly navigating the uneven terrain. They were traversing over a particularly steep section when, with a shout of alarm, one of the men quickly jumped in the back with Steve to stop the prone man sliding right out of the jeep. He kept a closer eye on him after that, wedging himself between Steve and the side of the jeep bed.

The pilot and single crew member stayed behind with the plane. The pilot had already expressed his concerns over the landing and Wo Fat instructed him to thoroughly inspect the landing gear and let him know if there was any damage. He had a man with mechanical expertise at his bunker and would send him back to the airstrip if anything required immediate attention. He informed that pilot that he would be in need of his plane again, most likely tomorrow, and to refuel and have the jet ready to leave at a moment's notice.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The techs in the command room were having trouble maintaining a visual on the convoy, due to the dense canopy cover provided by the trees as the jeeps drove deeper into the more heavily forested area. Joe instructed them to calculate a route back from the known location of Wo Fat's bunker and use the convoy's current speed to predict their route. Sure enough, they were able to keep tabs on the convoy as flashes of jeep were momentarily visible along the predicted route. Joe spoke, "Looks like they're transporting Commander McGarrett to the bunker." He turned to one of the techs, "Update SEAL Team 9, have them stand by. Convoy is 2 Klicks out, moving at approximately 10mph."

Commander Gutches acknowledged the transmission and signalled to his SEAL Team to move out. They made quick time over the rough terrain, advancing stealthily in well-practiced formation. He held up a clenched fist to stop his men when they were within sight of the old military installation. At first glance it looked abandoned, but they had already established that it was in active operation. Patrols were routinely dispatched to check the perimeter and SEAL Team 9 had logged the frequency and route of each patrol. Lieutenant Bradley Jacks had also noted the location of trip wires on the most accessible paths to the compound and the men went to great lengths to avoid tripping any of them. Wade used hand signals to dispatch each member of the Team to their respective positions, Petty Officer Clay Garcia smoothly assembling his long-range rifle with practiced ease. He took the time to brush the ground under him so that it was free of stones and debris, packed it with soft leaves and then settled down to what could be hours of patient waiting in his final firing position - known amongst snipers as FFP; his mind was already slipping into sniper-mode - automatically calculating distances, wind speed and a whole raft of other variables. When the time came, he would be ready. The men blended into the landscape, completely invisible to the eye; a silent deadly force laid in wait for their prey.


	29. How much do you want to know?

**Chapter 29**

The decision about whether to take out Wo Fat and his men as soon as they arrived at the compound had been a subject of intense discussion. In the end it was decided that it was too risky, the jeeps would provide the enemy with cover and all it would take is for just one soldier to make it into the bunker to raise the alarm and then Han Ji-Woon would be on high alert. That would take away the element of surprise for their planned strike on the Dark Sun camp. Another consideration was that the commander would be right in the crossfire if they attacked the convoy now.

Wade was ordered to keep the bunker under observation and only engage if they considered Steve to be in immediate danger. The jeeps made their way in single file along the last section of track. The first jeep to arrive pulled up outside the utilitarian concrete structure and Gutches had been confused when he had seen one of Wo Fat's men with an old red Champ toolbox, "What the hell do they want with that, are they planning a little light maintenance on their jeeps?" He had communicated the sighting back to the command room. Chin and Joe had locked eyes, understanding instantly the significance of Wo Fat's actions. Chin spoke up,

"Wo Fat hasn't gone to all this trouble just to kill him. He wants something from Steve and it all links back to John's investigation and the contents of that box. Whatever it is, he obviously expects it to take some time given the extreme lengths he has gone to in order to throw would-be pursuers off his trail." Joe nodded in agreement and spoke into his comms,

"Commander Gutches, we believe that Wo Fat has no intention of killing Commander McGarrett. He wants something from him and it relates to the intel that is in that red toolbox. Do not engage, you'll get your chance when they come back out – it will be easier to pick them off when they are exiting the compound, before they can reach the cover of the jeeps."

The jeep containing the unconscious commander pulled up the closest to the entrance. The soldiers dragged Steve out of the back and carried him between them into the bunker. Wo Fat took a deep breath as he exited from the vehicle. Confident that all was clear, he followed his men into the bunker. His plan couldn't have gone any more smoothly, Commander Steven J. McGarrett had to all intents and purposes just disappeared off the face of the earth. They had left not even a hint of a clue as to their true destination and the carefully-planned red herrings would distract any would-be pursuers for weeks.

Wo Fat's men had already been briefed and efficiently went about their tasks. They carried Steve to a cell and locked one of his ankles into a solid metal ring clamp that was attached to the cell wall with a thick chain. Then the prone man was arranged into the recovery position and left laid out on the cold concrete floor. The men quickly left the room, the heavy door of the cell swinging shut with a loud bang.

Steve very slowly started to come back to awareness, the pull of the drug stopping him from waking up fully. He groaned and shifted on the floor as his eyes fluttered open. The world immediately began to spin and he couldn't suppress the urge to be sick. He managed to roll to one side before he retched, heaving for a couple of minutes until nothing was coming out but a foul smelling bile. He was struggling for breath by the time he finished and moaned in pain. He pushed himself back away from the offending pile on the floor until he was sat up against the cell wall. He let his head rest against the rough surface, just breathing in and out until he felt able to open his eyes again. This time he was able to focus and the relieved to find that the room had stopped spinning. He slowly looked around, being careful to not set off another round of sickness. He was in a concrete room, a small window letting in the last rays of light of the day. It was high up and had thick steel bars. It was then that he noticed that there was someone in the cell with him. Another man was chained up just like he was and was laid on the ground, not moving.

Steve scooted over to him, enough play in the chain to allow him to get right next to him. He cautiously turned him over and checked for signs of life, sighing in relief when he could feel a pulse in the man's neck. He looked closely and recognized him as CIA Agent Joshua Hirsch, Jenna's fiancé. He continued to examine the man, looking for injuries. There were faded bruises and a mixture of scars and healed cuts all over his body. Steve carefully palpitated his ribs, but didn't think any were broken. Josh had been systematically tortured but some time had passed since the last beating, given the degree of healing that had occurred. He was painfully thin and had obviously been malnourished over a long period of time. He didn't wake even with all the prodding and so Steve tested his level of consciousness with a sternum rub, pressing down with the knuckles of his closed fist in the center of the man's chest. Josh moaned and his eyes fluttered, slowly focusing on Steve. He tried to speak, but couldn't form any words. Steve quickly spoke to stop the man from struggling, "It's okay. Agent Hirsch, I'm Commander Steve McGarrett from the U.S. Navy. Just lie still, don't try to talk." The one-sided conversation was cut short by the loud squeal of the cell door swinging open. Wo Fat entered the cell, flanked by two of his men.

"Ah, nice to see you awake, Commander. I see you have already met your cellmate," he said and then his nose wrinkled from the smell. He waved at one of the soldiers and motioned for him to clean up the mess. The man quickly pulled over a hose and washed everything away down a large drain in the middle of the cell. Once this was done, he put the hose back into place and stood slightly behind his boss. Steve glared at him with pure hatred,

"I'm gonna kill you, you bastard." Wo Fat shrugged and looked thoughtful,

"Maybe one day you will, Commander. But not today. I wanted to ask you about something, I believe you have information that is valuable to me." He moved closer to Steve, "Your father was investigating corruption within HPD and the Governor's office, as well as looking into your mother's unfortunate _accident_ −" Steve interrupted him with a furious tirade,

"Don't you dare say her name, you sonovabitch! What did she ever do to you? She was just a school teacher?" Wo Fat silently observed Steve before replying,

"Was she?" He let out a little sigh, "How much do you really know about your family's history? How much do you want to know?" Steve frowned, confused by the man's statement. Once again the ominous warning about not delving too deep into his family's history was coming back to haunt him. He fought down his anger and contemplated Wo Fat's words before he replied,

"Why did you order my father's murder?" His nemesis stroked his chin as he walked around the cell before turning back to the chained man,

"He was getting too close. I couldn't allow him to interfere in my plans with the Yakuza and uncover the identities of all the very respectable people on my payroll. As you well know, the islands of Hawaii are a key strategic base in the Pacific region. I have invested much time and money in getting my supply chains established there." Wo Fat paused, clearly debating how much to share with Steve, "He had come across the code name 'Shelburne' and asked me for my help." Steve remained silent, this was not new information to him but he didn't want to let the other man know that. His nemesis continued, "As I'm sure you suspect, I have a high level contact in the CIA and only last week they told me something very interesting about Shelburne – that was the code name for the agent who killed my mother. However, even they were not privy to the identity of Shelburne – it would appear that all records have been destroyed. The mission was unsanctioned and so could have been highly damaging to the agency . . . although not half as damaging as it was to the son they left without a mother." Steve kept his eyes on Wo Fat, as he paced restlessly. This was the first time that he had ever seen the man express any emotion. He finally spoke again, "Your mother would know who Shelburne is. I want to find her and ask her." At this Steve's eyes widened and he leaned forward,

"What are you talking about? My mother's dead! You ordered her murder just like my father!" Wo Fat levelled his gaze on Steve,

"Oh Commander, you couldn't be more wrong – on both counts. I had nothing to do with the car bomb. In fact I was only just made aware of who was responsible, by your own investigation actually, and it was dealt with as you well know," he stopped talking, clearly wrestling internally with himself over how much to divulge. After a minute he came to a decision and continued speaking, "I made a promise to your father not to share this, he said it would be too hard on you. Your father was a very principled man . . . so I'm asking you, Commander – do you want me to continue or not? The choice is entirely yours."

Steve was having trouble processing all of this new information and sagged back against the wall in despair. Part of him wanted to scream at the man to stop talking, but the other part of him just wanted to know what was worth all this pain. He opened his eyes and looked straight at the man seemingly intent on destroying him,

"Tell me." Wo Fat dipped his head in assent,

"Very well, Commander. As you wish."


	30. The past is back

**Chapter 30**

Wo Fat paused and when he was satisfied that Steve really wanted him to continue he proceeded to relay all the information that he had uncovered to date, "I received intel that indicates that Doris McGarrett didn't die in the car bomb. A corpse of a Jane Doe who had died that week was taken from the morgue and placed in the car before the bomb was set off. You may wonder how a simple school teacher would have the resources to not only know that the attack was imminent but was also able to stage her own death? The answer is quite simple, before she was Doris McGarrett your mother was a CIA agent. She was part of the operation that led to my mother's death, but I believe that she was unaware that it was unsanctioned and instead had been misled by her superiors. The target was my father, Yao Fat, your government stubbornly believing that he was involved in anti-American activities," at this, he stopped talking and took a deep breath, "my mother should never have been driving his car that day. She was killed instantly by what I have now found out to be a car bomb, but it was covered up and made to look like a car accident."

Steve couldn't believe what he was hearing, his mother was alive? He was still struggling to process what Wo Fat had told him when the other man began talking again, "Your mother, she was known as Sarah Pattison back then, felt so guilty that an innocent woman had been killed that she took it upon herself to raise me as her own. She had already become close to my father on the orders of the CIA - I believe that she pretended that she was continuing to monitor my father, but really she was staying to look after a baby who had been left without a mother. Then several years later the CIA discovered her ruse and forced her to leave." The arms dealer stopped his explanation for a minute, letting the significance of his words sink in. When he was sure that Steve had processed this shocking news he continued, "I have been looking for her for years, I even let myself be recruited by the MSS and used my position to gain access to high-level intel. About a year ago I found out through Mr. Noshimuri that your father was doing exactly the same thing. He had started investigating the car bombing and was making awkward inquiries within the CIA. My own source within the agency was able to link Sarah Pattison to Doris McGarrett. I have to hand it to your father, he was a persistent and determined investigator and he uncovered the code name Shelburne, but neither of us knew its significance at the time."

The stoic Navy SEAL was having great difficulty controlling his emotions, not wanting to show any weakness in front of his enemy. He didn't trust himself to speak and so sat silently on the cell floor. Wo Fat dispassionately took in the warring emotions flitting across the man's face, "So, Commander. As you can imagine, _our_ mother and I have a great deal to discuss. She is the only one who would be able to identify Shelburne and tell me which one of her superiors gave the original kill order. I very much would like to see to it that they don't have a long and happy future ahead of them." He looked down at the floor as anger and sorrow competed for dominance, "I had what I thought was my mother's body exhumed and DNA testing showed that we didn't even bury my mother, it was a complete stranger . . . you'll be able to relate to that, knowing what you do now."

He turned away from Steve, "We come back to why I have invited you here for a civilised conversation." Despite Steve's predicament, he let out a snort at that ridiculous statement. Wo Fat dramatically spun back round, clearly taking his cues from a clichéd Bond villain, "I believe you hold information that will help me locate both our mothers. I wish to bury my mother with the dignity she deserves and I very much want that conversation with Doris McGarrett." Steve just stared at him in astonishment before angrily shouting out his reply,

"How the hell am I supposed to know anything about either of them? I thought _my_ mother was killed in a car accident until a few months ago! I hadn't even talked to my father for nearly a year before he was killed . . . he never shared the details of his investigation with me." The other man nodded sagely,

"Indeed, but you may know more than you think. I never had the chance to properly analyze all of the items in your father's toolbox, but you did . . . I'm not an unreasonable man, I am going to give you a little time to re-evaluate the contents again. Now you know the truth, this may cast an entirely new light on matters." He glowered ominously at the Navy SEAL for a minute, "Do not test my resolve, Commander. Find me something or I will be forced to take out my frustration on Agent Hirsch while you watch, helpless to stop me. I have observed the kind of man that you are and believe that this will be a much more effective tactic than torturing you directly, although I might introduce you to my cattle prod just for my own amusement." With a final glare, he abruptly turned and left the room.

A minute later one of the soldiers came back with the Champ box and dumped it on the ground next to Steve. He disappeared again and returned with bottles of water and a handful of MREs, the foil packets of the ready meals still unopened. Then Steve was left to his own thoughts as the cell door clanged shut again. Steve felt completely adrift and found himself longing for the comfort of his ohana. In that moment he was not a stone-cold special operator, but the lost boy who had been sat all alone on a plane looking back out of the window as it took him ever further away from his family, his home and all that he had ever known. He still vividly remembers the exact moment when his beloved island home was just a speck on the horizon and then faded out of view altogether. His gaze shifted and he found himself looked despairingly at the familiar battered red box, full of dangerous secrets that had cost his dad his life. He viciously shook himself back into the present - Agent Hirsch was relying on him to find a way out of this FUBAR situation, this was not the time to wallow in self-pity.

Josh had been lying there the whole time, completely ignored by all parties. He managed to garner sufficient energy to speak, croaking out the words painfully, "That's one seriously messed up situation, man. And here I was thinking I was about to be rescued . . ." he trailed off and Steve patted his shoulder,

"Shit, I'm sorry. Wo Fat is one vindictive bastard – now I know why he hates the American government so much . . . here let me help you sit up, I need to get some fluids and calories into you before you pass out." Josh huffed, not having the energy to laugh,

"Yeah, just don't take too long – no pressure, but I would really _really_ like you to find something that stops me from taking another beating." The natural light had almost completely faded and a bank of fluorescent strip lights hummed into life, illuminating the cell in bright light.

Steve made quick work of mixing up a couple of MREs and carefully spooned the contents into Josh's mouth, the man too weak to even feed himself. He helped the stricken agent drink half a bottle of water before rapidly scarfing down a couple of bottles of water and a ready-to-eat meal himself – there was no point letting himself get dehydrated and who knows when his next meal might be. During his BUD/S training he had sometimes only had minutes to eat one meal in a 24 hour period and the habit of eating when he could and as quickly as he could had stayed with him, much to Danny's very vocal disgust. Steve forced all thoughts of his ohana out of his head, he had to stay in special operator mode and in complete control.

He sighed sadly as he opened the mysterious Champ box and methodically emptied the contents and organized them into distinct piles. Josh watched with interest, having had nothing to occupy his attention during his time in captivity. He asked, "Can I help?" as he was feeling a slight boost in energy after the high calorie nutritious meal. Steve pushed the empty tool box across the floor until it was resting next to him,

"You could examine the box itself, maybe I have overlooked something." Josh put his keen mind to use for the first time in 3 long years and slowly pushed the box around on the floor, examining it from every angle. Then he opened up the lid and ran his finger over each edge. He frowned as he felt a slight lip, like a run you would get from the edge of the brush when you were painting and you didn't quite smooth it out before it dried. His nails were long and he used his sharp thumb nail to flick against the lip of the paint and, after a few rubs, a chunk of it came away. He looked closely and saw that the paint below was a subtly different colour,

"Commander, someone has painted over the original color of this toolbox with almost exactly the same color – like they didn't want to make it obvious that it had been painted." Steve looked up from his pile of postcards, surprised at Josh's revelation,

"Why would you paint a crappy old toolbox?" he reflected on that for a moment before reaching the obvious conclusion, "you wouldn't – not unless you were trying to cover something up!" He snatched up the toolbox and turned it around in his hands. "We need something to scrape off this top layer of paint . . . aha, that'll do it," he declared as he prised out the end of a rusty old file that had been trapped in between the lid and the hinges. Steve started to carefully scrape the surface of the box with long strokes. It took about half an hour but he was making progress and exposing the surface below. Josh lifted a shaky hand and pointed to the underside of the box,

"There's something written on it, in that bottom corner." Steve stopped his scraping and looked at where Josh was pointing. He gingerly scraped the area to reveal a series of random letters and then PS – Shelburn. He frowned,

"That's misspelt. Shelburne has an 'e' at the end of it." Years in Naval Intelligence had exposed him to his fair share of codes and ciphers, he looked over to Josh, "This could be a code that doesn't allow for repeated letters. Shelburn already has an 'e' in it. What do you think the 'PS' stands for? It could be shorthand for something?" Josh just shrugged,

"Beats me. I left the cipher stuff to the techies." Steve continued to rack his brain, going through the names of every cipher he had ever encountered but he came up empty. His frustration got the better of him and he let the empty box clatter onto the concrete floor,

"For Christ's sake, Dad – why couldn't you just write down whatever it was that you bloody found." He addressed Josh, "I'm gonna buy us some time, get Wo Fat busy doing something that doesn't involve torturing you," he raised his voice and shouted out as loudly as he could, "hey, I got something. Is anyone there?"

The door opened and a soldier entered the room. Steve explained what he had found and the man warily came closer to take the empty box, making sure to stay out of arms reach. After seeing the code on the base of the toolbox, he nodded and silently left the room with the box in his hands. Another soldier brought in a handful of supplies and then Steve and Josh were left alone again. The agent's eyes lit up at the modest pile of food, spotting brightly-colored candy bars. He croaked out an excited question, "Do my eyes deceive me or is that a Reese's Peanut Butter Cups bar? Oh baby, come to Daddy . . ."


	31. Taken by surprise

**Chapter 31**

The SEAL Team had been monitoring the building where Steve had been taken, but the thick concrete walls were preventing them from visualizing the number of people inside using their IR scanner. Gutches was anxious about not having eyes on Steve and expressed his concern back to the Pearl situation room. Joe and Eddie understood his unease and the decision was made to storm the compound and take it by force if Wo Fat and his men were still inside by the end of the next day. Joe shared his thoughts with Wade, "My preference is to wait for them to surface and pick them off. If the commander isn't with them, then the Team can enter the bunker for EXFIL."

They didn't have too long to wait, Wade's next sitrep informing them of movement around the bunker at first light the following morning.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Wo Fat had some of the best hackers and intelligence gatherers at his disposal. His time with the MSS had not been wasted and he had built up an illicit network that would be the envy of any government intelligence agency. It only took 3 hours for one of them to get back to him with their findings. The PS stood for Polybius square, an ancient and obscure code used to convert letters into 2 digit numbers. Applying the code 'Shelburn' to the rest of the letters had revealed a set of map coordinates. Wo Fat absently fingered the numbers that he had written down. His asset has already given him the location, it was what appeared to be a non-descript empty field in Cambodia, the country a small Asian nation sandwiched between Thailand and Vietnam. The man carefully considered the significance of the location. It wasn't a strategically-important position for any nation and there was nothing at the site to indicate the presence of a building or outpost. The satellite images clearly showed nothing but an empty field. Wo Fat slowly came to the conclusion that if the point of interest wasn't above ground then it had to be below. Something was buried there . . . or someone. Pao handed him a print out of the satellite image, showing the fields as patchwork squares from the aerial vantage point of the satellite. A red target with a cross marked the exact position of 12.002, 105.339. Wo Fat smirked, 'X' marks the spot indeed. They would make a move at first light the next morning and he gave the order to prepare the plane for the flight to Cambodia and have the crew on standby. Mercifully, the rough landing had not caused any significant damage to the landing gear of the plane.

Early the next morning Wo Fat swiftly made his way back to the cell, a quick jerk of his head making the soldier standing on guard jump to attention and open the door. He strode into the room and kicked Steve's foot to rouse him from his fitful sleep,

"Well done, Commander. I knew you would find me something if sufficiently motivated. We're moving out, we have a location to investigate. You may have just answered one of the two questions I had for you. After that, you will act as the perfect bait to lure out Doris – I'm sure mother dearest won't be able to resist coming out of hiding to save her son." Wo Fat transferred his gaze onto Josh, "Agent Hirsch, I no longer have any use for you. I'm afraid that you won't be joining us on our trip." Steve struggled against his ankle chain to cover Josh with his body and pleaded with the would-be executioner,

"No, no – don't do this. Bring him with us, I'm not going to try and escape if I know that you still have him as leverage. Kill him and you lose that." Wo Fat was amused at Steve's desperate attempt to save the other man, but had to concede that he made a good point,

"Very well. You can carry him, Commander – that should keep you occupied. After all, you can be a most troublesome man. Anton and Victor Hesse made the fatal error of underestimating you. I won't make the same mistake."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Wade and his Team were on high alert as a group of soldiers starting coming out of the compound. Soon they had a visual on Wo Fat and his henchmen, shortly followed by Steve. He was struggling under the weight of another man, whom he was carrying on his back. The three Yakuza men from the warehouse brought up the rear, keeping their weapons trained on Steve. All of their focus was concentrated on the perceived threat right in front of them, none of them thought to look for a much greater threat coming from the surrounding forest.

On Commander Gutches' signal SEAL Team 9 began their assault. Garcia methodically dropped the soldiers who had exited the bunker first, ensuring they were all head shots. He didn't want any of them to come back up firing. They were not a highly trained group, panic ensuing immediately upon hearing the crack of the first shots. The men behind Steve started wildly firing into the trees and Steve rolled onto the ground and relieved himself of his heavy load. He had stashed the broken end of the file from the toolbox into his right boot and sprung back onto his feet, covered the short distance to the well-dressed Yakuza man nearest him and slit his throat all in one fluid movement. Jacks and Wade had flanked the remaining men and cut them both down in a brief burst of gunfire. Steve stared at the dead Yakuza man who had so calmly shot Jenna and muttered, "Told you I'd kill you."

Unlike his men, Wo Fat was highly trained. On watching the first man in front of him drop to the ground, he had resisted the urge to go back for Steve and instead had headed for the cover of the nearby trees. Unfortunately for him, Petty Officer Samson had been tasked with tracking the man's every move and had anticipated his trajectory the minute he had started running. The SEAL efficiently circled around the trees until he was directly in the fleeing man's path. He stepped out at the last minute and felled Wo Fat with a hard blow from his rifle. Samson smiled in satisfaction, "Gotcha." He grabbed hold of the unconscious man's collar and dragged him back towards the others. Steve caught his eye and inclined his head in silent thanks.

Wade was busy providing a sitrep back to mission control, but they had been able to observe most of the takedown via satellite imaging and so were already aware that Steve was safe and Wo Fat was in custody. Commander White barked out orders over the comms link, "Ascertain how many tangoes are remaining in the bunker from Commander McGarrett's intel. Seize all electronic equipment for further analysis and then set the charges to destroy the compound. You are then clear to proceed with Operation Mayflower." Gutches confirmed the orders and turned to his men,

"Lt. Jacks, prepare the charges. Commander McGarrett, how many hostiles remaining?" Steve looked up from checking on Josh,

"Three that I saw, Sir. Could be more in other parts of the bunker." The CO nodded in understanding,

"Copy that. Given the thickness of the walls, they could still be unaware of our presence even with WWII going on out here but we'll breach on the assumption that they are expecting us." Wade waved towards Josh, "Stay with him, Commander. Neutralize any hostiles who get past us."

He passed Steve a weapon and spare clips. Steve walked over to one of the dead men and stripped him of his tac vest, which he quickly fastened around himself. He also found a handy looking combat knife and slid that into the pocket of his cargo pants. Steve looked over at Josh and decided that it couldn't hurt to get a tac vest for the man. He fastened it securely around Josh's skeletal torso while Samson moved his prisoner along the ground until he was in Steve's line of vision and then efficiently secured Wo Fat's hands and feet with zip ties. Meanwhile, Garcia had circled around to the back of the compound and confirmed he was in position to pick off anyone trying to escape from the rear exit. Wade took the remaining SEALs with him and they entered the bunker on his command.

Steve had been provided with a comms earpiece and was able to listen to the action in the bunker. SEAL Team 9 encountered little resistance, systematically clearing each room in the bunker and killing anyone who remained, five soldiers in total. No one had attempted to flee from the compound via either the front of back entrances, they really had been taken completely by surprise.

Bradley Jacks immediately set about his task of placing the explosive charges and connecting them to a timed detonator. The other members of the Team went back into one of the rooms which was being used as a command center and took instruction from the intelligence officers back at the Naval situation room at Pearl Harbor. Harry talked Wade through the procedure to grant him remote access to the computers and they waited while the lieutenant ran diagnostics and captured the data that had been sent and received over the past several months. While Harry was busy with his tasks, another tech was listing all the hardware that would need to be brought back from the mission for more detailed analysis.

On the outside of the compound, Wo Fat had begun to stir and winced in pain as he regained consciousness. He tested his bindings, but they had been expertly tied and he was unable to even slightly loosen his restraints. Steve picked up his movements out of the corner of his eye and checked to see that the man was fully awake before speaking, "I only want one thing out of you, who is your contact in the CIA?"

Wo Fat shot a look of pure hatred at the SEAL, "And why would I tell you anything." Steve shrugged and continued,

"Because if you don't, I will be paying your lovely fiancée Daiyu Mei a little visit. I understand that she will be at Fudan University for a few more days to attend the awards ceremony for her mother. And believe me when I tell you that I'll put a bullet right between her eyes."


	32. End of the line

**Chapter 32**

Steve had moved over to Wo Fat as he was talking and punctuated his last sentence with a prod to the middle of his forehead. For the first time, Steve saw real fear in the eyes of his nemesis. Wo Fat was completely taken off guard, he had been so sure that no one would ever find out about his impending marriage to Ms. Mei. Steve looked at him impassively, "You have one chance to give me a name. If I even suspect that you're lying, I'll kill her. Do we have an understanding?" Wo Fat closed his eyes and Steve could see the moment when he accepted defeat. His shoulders slumped and he forced out his reply,

"Jonathan Kray. He's the Chief of Pacific Operations and Counter Intelligence." Steve sat back on his haunches and observed the man in front of him, "So, what did my father's code tell you? Where were we going in such a hurry?" Wo Fat glared at Steve but answered him anyway,

"It's the coordinates for an empty field in Cambodia. There's nothing of interest above ground."

Steve nodded thoughtfully, "So you suspect that the interest lies below ground?" The other man just looked at him and stayed silent, "What do you think is buried there?" Wo Fat cut in,

"Not what. Who . . . I believe it could be a grave for my mother, Lei Kuan." Steve reflected on this for a moment and thought about the devastating effect that the 'death' of his own mother had on himself. He finally spoke,

"She was an innocent victim in all of this, the CIA was wrong to initiate a mission that was so badly planned and executed that an innocent mother was killed instead of their intended target . . . I give you my word, I'll have this location excavated and if the body of your mother is there then I'll see that she receives a proper re-burial in your family plot." Wo Fat stared incredulously at Steve,

"And just why would you go to all that trouble?" Steve shrugged again,

"Because I know what it feels like to lose a mother and it's not right that your mother is not buried in her rightful resting place. As it turns out, neither is mine . . . but that was of her own making−" Steve was interrupted by the sound of Josh choking. He quickly jumped back to his feet and covered the short distance to the struggling man. Steve knelt beside him and turned him over onto his side, allowing Josh to cough out a mouthful of vomit and breathe again. He continued to gag for a few moments and Steve stayed with him, murmuring words of comfort.

Wo Fat took advantage of the distraction to shuffle the short distance to one of the dead men, he had seen a rusty old file laid beside the fallen man and slowly adjusted his body until he could grasp it in his hands. He painstakingly fed the metal through his fingers until it was sticking up between his wrists and then he started to saw at the zip ties. Within a few seconds the sharp metal edge had pierced through the bindings and his hands were free. It had cut his skin as well, the blood making his hands slick. Keeping his body as still as possible he used the file to cut through the ties securing his ankles. A quick glance in Steve's direction confirmed that the man was still preoccupied with the sickly agent.

The freed man internally cursed that he was missing his weapons, Samson had efficiently divested him of his gun and knife while he was unconscious. Undeterred, he gracefully rolled to his feet and charged at Steve with the file in his hand. The SEAL caught the movement in his peripheral vision and instinctively jerked away from the incoming threat. Wo Fat's momentum carried him past Steve and into Josh and the file slid harmlessly off the tac vest around Josh's torso.

Steve took advantage of his opponent's temporary lack of balance and grabbed the other man around his waist and took him down onto the ground. Wo Fat was an accomplished fighter, clearly well-versed in many different styles of martial arts, and he viciously spun Steve around and off him. The two men traded blows before Wo Fat was able to raise the weapon in his hand again and moved to stab Steve, but Steve quickly retrieved the tactical knife from his pocket and in one smooth motion plunged it deep into Wo Fat's chest. The file he was holding clattered to the floor as Wo Fat stared in disbelief at the blossoming red stain spreading rapidly outwards and soaking his shirt. He slowly dropped to his knees and then fell face forward into the dirt, driving the knife even deeper into his body. Breathing heavily from the sudden exertion, the Navy SEAL took a moment to catch his breath before checking the prone man for a pulse. He took his time, wanting complete confirmation that the man that had caused him so much pain was really dead. He found a piece of paper on the dead man with the coordinates and carefully slipped it into one of his own pockets. Finally, Steve was satisfied and re-took his place at Josh's side. The sickness had passed and Josh was able to speak,

"Shit . . . that sucks." He glanced over to the man on the ground, "Good, you got the bastard. I'd really like to go home now, please." Steve chuckled,

"Roger that, Agent Hirsch." The two men sat in comfortable silence until SEAL Team 9 emerged from the bunker. Gutches glanced at Wo Fat, lying dead on the ground in a pool of blood and raised an eyebrow in Steve's direction. Steve explained himself, "Yeah, about that - I had a little trouble with the prisoner . . . although not before I got the name of his contact in the Company."

Wade cracked a smile, "Now that's what I call a result, Commander."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Joe listened intently to Wade's update, smiling broadly when the name of Wo Fat's inside man in the CIA was conveyed to him. Admiral Janderman would take this intel to the CIA Director in person and leave them to deal with their traitorous Chief of Pacific Operations and Counter Intelligence; Mr. Kray had the blood of many Americans on his hands, not least the Operation Switchback CIA agents. Now that they had a name, they could covertly conduct a deep-dive into his communications and finances and set a trap to catch the mole red-handed – as all they had to go on at this moment in time was the word of a less than trustworthy criminal. It was possible that Naval Intelligence would uncover more definitive evidence once they fully analyzed the data from the bunker's computers, but that wasn't a given.

Joe took a minute to confer with Eddie about proceeding with Operation Mayflower – the code name given to the mission to take out Han Ji-Woon and the entire Dark Sun camp. They debated the relative merits of blowing Wo Fat's compound now and whether this would have the potential to alert the militia group. Deciding that it was too risky, all it would take was just one foot soldier in the vicinity to hear the blast, they gave the order for the timer to be set 4 hours from now – more than enough time for the SEAL Team to trek back to the camp and execute their raid. Steve spoke out before Joe could issue further orders, "Commander White, requesting permission to assist SEAL Team 9 with the mission, Sir? I have firsthand knowledge of the camp and surrounding area . . . and I would also like to bring home the body of Commander Hart if the opportunity presents itself."

There was silence over the comms as Joe caught Eddie's eye. Eddie shrugged and gave a slight nod of his head. Joe replied to Steve's request, "Roger that. Permission granted . . . but, Commander McGarrett, under no circumstances are you to let the recovery of the body compromise the primary mission objectives. Have I made myself clear?"

Steve clipped out his response, "Crystal, Sir."


	33. Tangerine

**Chapter 33**

Steve jerked his head towards Josh as he addressed Commander Gutches, "Sir, how do you suggest we move out with Agent Hirsch – he's in no shape to be carried miles over this terrain, even by jeep." Wade smirked, looking pleased with himself,

"As soon as I became aware of the agent's presence and his poor physical condition, I had Commander White contact a mutual friend of ours from way back. His name's Frank Bama and he's based just south of the DMZ. He's nuttier than a squirrel turd but one hell of a pilot and can get his hands on a helo−" at this Joe's snort crackled over the comms,

"Is that what you're calling Tangerine these days?" Wade gave a bigger smirk,

"If she'll get airborne then she'll do," the rest of the SEALs looked mystified at the exchange and Wade threw out a quick comment to explain himself, "Tangerine's a flying death trap – a relic from the Vietnam war but she hasn't crashed yet, so . . . ." he trailed off. Steve made an 'okaaay' face and chipped in,

"Transport is transport, whatever it looks like. Commander White, is the plane that I must've arrived in still in position? It is? Roger that. If Mr. Bama can facilitate our EXFIL and transfer us to the plane, then I can fly us out of North Korea and into more 'friendly' territory without compromising Navy assets. The North Koreans will be expecting Wo Fat to be leaving in that plane sometime soon anyway and so it won't raise any suspicion." Steve glanced at the men stood beside him, "A luxury private jet sure beats military transport, wouldn't you say?" The beaming smiles all around him answered that question.

Steve stepped back and let the CO take command. Petty Officer Samson was to remain at a safe distance from the soon-to-be-demolished compound with Agent Hirsch. It was possible that some of Wo Fat's soldiers would return to the bunker and it was imperative that they were not able to raise the alarm or deactivate the explosives. The other SEALs had made short work of dragging the bodies out of sight and removing all traces of the recent firefight, kicking dirt over any blood patches that had been left on the rough ground. Samson was to position himself back at the treeline with a clear view of the main entrance. He also had the stash of hard drives from the compound's operation room and the Champ toolbox safely with him. The body of Wo Fat was rolled into a sheet and tied securely, the men taking care not to cause any damage to his face. They would need his body to 'stage' the prisoner transportation and send the evidence to Agent Greer so she could use this to reel in the dead man's fiancée, Daiya Mei.

The intelligence officers in the command center back at JBPHH would maintain a visual on both the compound and the Dark Sun base of operations, acting as their eye in the sky and alerting the special operators to incoming threats. "Moving out, ladies," barked out Gutches and set off without a backward glance, confident in the knowledge that his Team was already merging into formation behind him to travel the short distance to the Dark Sun base with well-practiced stealth and speed.

SEAL Team 9 had already scoped out the Dark Sun camp, exactly as they had for Wo Fat's bunker. They had logged patrols and any nasty little surprises such as trip wires and motion-sensor cameras. Han Ji-Woon was suspicious and paranoid and had numerous 'security' devices rigged up around the perimeter. The members of the SEAL Team brought Steve up to speed with their findings and he in turn shared all the intel that he had gathered with Freddie the previous September. Wade was confident that his plan for the raid minimized risk to his Team; in the days that the Team had the location under surveillance, before Wo Fat had arrived in the region with Steve, they had observed Ji-Woon leaving the main camp around noon each day to walk to a small clearing nearby, where he then spent upwards of an hour practicing taekwondo - a form of martial arts revered across both North and South Korea that was almost like a religion for its followers. He was accompanied by the same man each time and they would train together before returning to the camp. Before the mission had commenced, Joe and Janderman had discussed the pros and cons of attempting to bring Ji-Woon in alive. Their final conclusion was that he was unlikely to talk even if they handed him over to the CIA for enhanced interrogation; plus neither man was a fan of the CIA's tactics to extract information, believing the validity of any resulting intel to be highly suspect. The risks were just too great and SEAL Team 9 had been given the order to destroy the camp and everyone in it, including the fanatical militia leader.

Clay Garcia settled into his sniper's nest, after carefully fitting his rifle with a silencer. It wouldn't do to alert anyone to the fact that shots had been fired. Steve understood the need to take out Ji-Woon but wished he could have questioned him as to the location of his brother's body - he would just have to locate Freddie some other way. He scanned the camp using camouflaged binoculars, giving Bradley Jacks the all clear. The other SEAL stealthily slipped from the trees and into a nearby ramshackle shed. Steve counted to 10 and then gave him the signal to exit and a moment later the explosives expert was back in the cover of the trees and hidden from view. There was only one road to and from the camp, with guards positioned at periodic positions along the dirt track. Lt. Harrison and Commander Gutches had hidden themselves about 500 yards apart at opposite sides of the road, giving them a clear view of the entire track between them. Steve and Jacks furtively moved from their current position until they were at opposite sides of the camp. The ramshackle buildings only covered a small area, so between them they had eyes on the entire base of operations.

Each member of the Team confirmed their readiness and then they settled down to wait. After about 45 minutes Garcia's voice came over their comms, "Targets are down, I repeat, both targets are down. Kills are confirmed, moving out now." Jacks set his timer to 3 minutes and when the countdown was complete, all hell broke loose as the plastic explosives he had planted in the shed were detonated. The resulting explosion sent wood splinters and metal shards at high velocity into the men stood in the immediate vicinity, killing them instantly. Dark Sun soldiers started to pour out of the other dilapidated structures, grabbing their rifles but not knowing where the threat was coming from.

One of them radioed to the men on the road and the guards all scrabbled to get back to their nearby vehicles in order to return to the camp. Harrison and Gutches coordinated between themselves to pick them off, one by one. One soldier managed to get to his decrepit old jeep and set off down the track but as he came alongside Harrison, a well-placed M67 hand grenade lobbed from the trees exploded right in front of the jeep, spraying the vehicle with deadly shrapnel and killing its occupant. The jeep veered off the track into the ditch with the dead soldier still slumped over the steering wheel.

Steve and Jacks cut down the soldiers as they came into view with controlled bursts of gunfire, with long-range support from Garcia - who had come closer to the camp as soon as he had killed Ji-Woon and his associate. When all visible tangoes had been neutralized, both SEALs cautiously circled back to each other and Steve covered Jacks while he set a series of explosive charges at regular intervals around the camp. A soldier popped up and was about to fire in their direction, but Steve dropped him with a head shot before he got the chance. Jacks signalled that he was done and they both turned to go back into the surrounding forest, but then Steve saw a fallen man whom he recognized from his original mission with Freddie. He was sure that back in September this was the soldier who had been shooting at them from behind a rusty old jeep and had been the one to inflict the bullet wounds that had injured Freddie and prevented him from escaping with Steve. The stricken man on the ground was bleeding from a bullet to his gut, but still alive. The SEAL grabbed him by the collar and dragged him back to the trees. Jacks looked at Steve with questioning eyes, "Why do we need him?"

Steve regained his breath, a bit winded from the effort of pulling a dead weight across the uneven ground, "He was there when we extracted Anton Hesse. I want to ask him about Commander Hart," he lowered his voice so that the bleeding man on the ground couldn't hear him, "just back me up and make him believe that I'll do it . . ." and with that Steve stepped on the man's chest, cutting off his labored breathing, "Tell me now, or I promise you I'll take a sample of your DNA and use it to identify you and track down your family. Where did you bury the soldier you killed here last September?" Steve lifted his foot and allowed the man to speak. He stared at Steve, recognition in his eyes, and then defiance flashed across his face,

"I don't know." Steve stamped his foot back down,

"Do you think I'm playing around here, you sonovubitch!" His voice dropped lower and each word dripped with menace, "I. Will. Kill. Your. Family."

Bradley leaned in, his voice ice-cold, "Don't call his bluff, he's done it before to get what he wants. I'd tell the man what he wants to know if I were you."


	34. A brother found

**Chapter 34**

The Dark Sun soldier whimpered and looked fearfully at Steve as he babbled about the location, "Okay, okay, leave them out of this . . . we buried him in a field near here . . ." Steve patted him down for weapons and then yanked the frightened man to his feet and dragged him to a car that was parked up nearby. It was rusty and looked like a chicken coop inside, but the key was in the ignition and it fired into life after a couple of turns. Steve updated the rest of SEAL Team 9,

"I've got a lead on Hart's location. I'm driving down the access road in an old green car, I can't tell what make it is - don't shoot me!" Wade replied,

"Copy that. Jacks - get clear and then light it up. Garcia, continue to watch for any stragglers we missed." Steve continued to drive, his bleeding passenger slumped against the door. He slowed the car as he approached his CO, who had made his way from his hiding place in the trees back to the road. Steve leaned out of the window to speak to the man,

"This one knows where they buried Commander Hart. Permission to check it out?" Wade nodded,

"Just don't take too long, Commander. We need to be ready to move out in 10. Pick up Harrison on your way, he's 500 yards further down this road. Rendezvous as planned at fourteen hundred hours." Steve gave the Commander a grateful smile and set off again. He had just stopped to let Harrison into the car when an enormous explosion had them both looking back towards the camp. Steve raised his eyebrow at the other SEAL,

"Jacks likes his C-4, doesn't he?" Harrison chuckled,

"You don't know the half of it . . . and it's actually EPX-1. It has the highest detonation velocity of any plastic explosive."

Steve smirked, "Of course it does."

He set off along the track once the other SEAL was safely in the back of the car. After only about a minute, the injured soldier motioned them to stop. Steve and Harrison dragged their prisoner out of the passenger seat and instructed him to show them the grave. The man feebly pointed across the field on their left and they moved out, supporting the soldier between them. When they reached a patch of the field that had less crop growth than the surrounding area, their prisoner indicated that they were in the right place.

Steve let him drop to the ground and looked around for something to use as a shovel. There was a large piece of bark and Steve snapped it into two pieces and handed one to Harrison. They both started to dig and it didn't take long before their bark shovels were scraping onto something hard. It was a very shallow grave and just below the surface some old wooden boards were visible. Steve braced himself and ripped up the boards one by one to reveal a dried corpse. He closed his eyes for a second and then moved forward to verify the identity of the man who had been killed and been unceremoniously dumped in an unmarked grave. Steve gingerly turned over the right arm to look for the tattoo that Freddie had shown him just before their HALO jump. He sucked in a shuddering breath as he made out the love heart etched into the shrivelled skin. Then he noticed the damage that had been done to his brother's body; all the joints and long bones had been broken, jagged pieces of bone sticking up at awkward angles. As his eyes drifted upwards he saw that the skull had been repeatedly caved in. He couldn't stop the tears that formed in his eyes and roughly brushed them away. His voice broke as he turned around to the bleeding man on the floor, "What did you do to my friend? He was already dead, you sick bastards!" Harrison put a steading hand on Steve's shoulder,

"Hey, man. Let's just prepare Commander Hart's body for transport and go. We have to be back at the rendezvous point in 5." Steve collected himself and nodded, glad that the other man was there to pull him back on point. Harrison had already pulled a plastic sheet out of his pack and proceeded to help Steve wrap it around Freddie's remains. They lifted the bundle out of the unmarked grave and placed it on the ground. Steve pulled out a grenade from his pocket and removed the tape, keeping his finger pressed down on the pin. He carefully placed it under the soldier's head, pushing the man back down onto the grenade,

"I wouldn't move if I were you." His voice was like ice, dripping with hatred. Then Steve straightened up and carried the remains of his brother and best friend back to the car with Harrison. They drove back down the road until Harrison indicated that they should stop, his eyes on the compass in his watch. Between them, they carried Freddie's remains into the trees and continued further into the forest to rendezvous with the rest of the Team.

Frank Bama had been delighted to get a call from Commander White, not having seen the man since Joe was last passing through South Korea in '08. He had readily agreed to put his beloved old helicopter back into service. She might not look much, but she had never let him down yet. He pushed an old cassette tape into the music player and rocked out to the sounds of James Gang Funk #49 as he flew perilously close to the border. He was a wily old bird and knew just how low and exactly which route to fly to avoid detection, after all it was not the first time that he had been required to fly this particular route. He was about a minute out from reaching the coordinates provided by Joe when he saw the smoking ruins of the Dark Sun training camp. He huffed a laugh, "Well hot damn, you boys sure don't mess around."

Then his full attention was required to manoeuvre the cumbersome helo around the trees in order to land in a small clearing. He had barely touched down when a line of men emerged from the trees, ran the short distance across the clearing and climbed in the back compartment of Tangerine. Frank had thoughtfully cleared out the chickens and assorted debris before he took off, so there was room for all of them. The last two men were carrying a large plastic wrapped package between them and carefully placed it down on the floor of the chopper. Frank briefly wondered what was inside but thought better of asking. He very cautiously feathered the controls to lift them clear of the trees and then banked to the right and steered them back towards the old military installation that had been used by Wo Fat and his men. He sniggered into his mike as they got closer to their destination, "Oh hell, I see you boys have been here as well."

The compound had been completely destroyed, the outer walls collapsed into what had been the bunker. There was nothing left but rubble, the ruins still smoking from the blast. It was much more open around the compound and Frank had no trouble dropping Tangerine down. Steve jumped down from the back and went to help Samson carry Josh to the waiting bird. The other SEALs retrieved the wrapped body of Wo Fat and the computer hard drives. When they were safely back aboard Wade tapped Frank's shoulder to let him know they were good to go. The journey that had taken so long by jeep was a quick hop by air and they were soon touching down on the airstrip next to Wo Fat's private jet. The men all expressed their heartfelt thanks to the pilot and Wade leaned over for a quick one armed hug, "Thanks, Frank. I owe you." Frank beamed back at him,

"That you do. Don't be a stranger, Wade."

The SEALs stormed the jet and quickly took control of the plane, overpowering the pilot and single crew member and securing them with zip ties. Gutches frowned in thought for a second and then gave the order to have the two men placed in the back of the cabin, not wanting them to get the chance to tip off the North Koreans. Steve had wasted no time in strapping himself into the pilot's seat and was already running through the essential pre-flight checks. He jerked his head towards the open plane door, "Lt. Jacks, would you mind?"

Bradley smirked, "It would be my absolute pleasure. I can't wait to try out those very comfy-looking sofas." He leant out of the open door to salute the man sat in the adjacent helicopter. Frank responded with a cheery wave and proceeded to encourage Tangerine back into flight and lifted off for his return journey back into the safety of the neighboring South Korea. With the plane door now securely closed, Steve was able to start taxiing the jet to the runway. His brow furrowed in a deep scowl as he took in the poor state of the runway surface. He turned and shouted to the occupants of the sumptuous cabin,

"Everyone buckle up, it's going to be a bumpy take-off. Don't let Agent Hirsch roll off that sofa." He gave them chance to comply and then accelerated down the pitted concrete before the front wheel lifted off and the jet took flight.


	35. Travelling in style

**Chapter 35**

Once they were safely airborne and at cruising altitude, Steve leaned over his shoulder and called out to everyone on board, "The Captain has switched off the seatbelt sign, you are safe to move around the cabin." Wade came up behind him with a smirk,

"Very funny, _Lieutenant_ _Commander_. You've a little way to go before you make Captain. Say, how much does one of these sweet rides go for anyway?" Steve chuckled,

"Around the $60 million mark. If you don't mind getting an older one with a few miles on the clock then you'll get a bit of change from $20 million." Gutches let out a low whistle,

"And they say crime doesn't pay . . ." he leaned on the back of the pilot's seat, "we're gonna get our favorite crime lord all set up for his photoshoot. I want to get the pictures and then get him wrapped up again as quickly as possible – the body's gonna start smelling pretty bad soon." Steve nodded in agreement,

"Copy that, Sir. How's Agent Hirsch doing?" Wade looked back at the rescued man who was currently laid out on one of the sofas,

"As well as can be expected. Samson has been giving him food and water, little and often. His stomach can't take too much at once." Steve's thoughts went to Jenna and he realized that he didn't know anything other than she was still alive when the extraction team reached the hospital and had been rushed straight into surgery,

"Any word on Jenna Kaye? Did she survive the surgery?"

Wade replied with a nod in the affirmative, "Last I heard. She's on life support, there may be some brain damage but the doctors won't know any more until she wakes up. They have her in a medically-induced coma for now," he glanced over in Josh's direction, "does he know anything?" Steve shook his head,

"No, I didn't divulge anything about Jenna or the mission. I couldn't risk him revealing the plan to Wo Fat under duress and he had enough to worry about without knowing that his fiancée was fighting for her life in hospital." Wade tutted and shook his head sadly,

"It's a FUBAR situation all round. He's soon going to be home safe, but it won't be over by a long shot. He'll have serious physical and psychological trauma to overcome – 3 years in captivity at the hands of someone like Wo Fat is not something you just shrug off. And then he's going to learn that his fiancée sold out her own teammates and condemned a man to exactly the same fate as him trying to get him back . . . will she face any charges?" Steve had to stop to think about that, he hadn't really given it any thought,

"To be honest, I don't really know. It's not illegal to ask a friend to come with you to Japan. She could claim that she had no idea that they would take me to North Korea or want to hurt me." Steve looked wistful as his thoughts turned to Five-0, "I had recommended that she be offered a position on the Five-0 Task Force, but after this she should have her security clearance revoked and that will prevent her from working in any type of law enforcement or government agency ever again."

Wade pushed himself up off the seat and sighed, "Her career prospects will be the last thing on her mind if she wakes up, she could be left with serious disabilities . . . hmmm, a very sad situation indeed." He was just walking away when a thought struck him, "Where are we going by the way, Commander?"

Steve cracked a smile, "Well I was considering a little R and R in Bali, Sir but thought it best to head to Fleet Activities Yokosuka." Gutches smirked at the man's reply and added,

"Ah, the U.S. Naval Base in Tokyo Bay. It's been a few years since I was last there . . . I'll have the Admiral contact the base on our behalf, get us cleared for landing. I'd put money on this baby not having an operational transponder – we don't want to get shot out of the sky by a not-so-welcoming committee!"

Steve waited for the CO to leave the cockpit and then slumped back in his seat and rubbed his eyes wearily. It had been a very long couple of days and he hadn't had any time to process the shocking revelations about his mother or the death, by his own hand, of the man who had caused him so much pain – a man who, as a child, had been damaged by Doris McGarrett's actions before Steve had even been born. He felt inexplicably angry at the woman - how could she have let his father believe that it was his investigation into the Yakuza that had directly caused her death. All the fear and the guilt that the poor man must've felt, feeling that were strong enough to warrant estranging himself from his own children in a desperate attempt to keep them safe. His Dad had spent the next 17 years scared for his family's safety and it set off his obsessive secretive investigation into the people responsible, probably as some sort of twisted self-imposed penance. And then he had paid for his dogged determination with a bullet to the head.

Steve tried to see things from her point of view but couldn't see how her actions could ever be justified. Did he want to see her again, after all Wo Fat was dead now and Hiro Noshimuri was facing prison time - theoretically she could come out of hiding? But then, how would she find out that her other 'son' was dead if she was deep in hiding? Steve had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach that Joe White knew far more than he was saying. The anger bubbled up again, if Joe had known all along and never told his father then Steve didn't know if he could forgive the man – he was meant to have been his father's closest friend, how could he have personally witnessed the damage that his mother's 'death' did to his Dad and not ever let him know that it wasn't his fault. His Dad could've stopped his investigation and had his children returned home to him, where they belonged. It would have been hard, but they could've at least tried to become a family again. The overwhelming emotions were exhausting Steve and he dropped his head into his hands and tried to stop thinking. About his mother's selfishness, Jenna's betrayal, Wo Fat's obsession and Joe's deceit.

Wade walked back into the cabin and had his Team unwrap the body of Wo Fat and stage it for the photos. They cleaned up his face and arranged him in a natural sitting position. They covered his bloodied shirt with a blanket and tied up his hands in front of him. Two of the SEALs flanked him, their faces obscured with scarves and the end photos really did look like Wo Fat was being transported back for rendition. As soon as they finished, the dead man was securely re-wrapped and the SEALs dumped his body at the back of the cabin next to the pilot and crew member.

Gutches observed the two men stare wild-eyed at the corpse laid beside them, "It doesn't look like your employer will be paying your wages this month, gentleman."


	36. Coming home

**Chapter 36**

Steve gave thanks for the brisk efficiency of the U.S. Navy as he settled down into the cargo seats of the military transport. It was barely 4 hours since he had touched down in the Gulfstream and he was already on his way back to Pearl Harbor. SEAL Team 9 were being debriefed at Fleet Activities Yokasuka and would remain in Tokyo for a few days of R and R before shipping out on their next mission. Agent Hirsch was being cared for in the military hospital and they had contacted an experienced psychologist with high-level security clearance who was already being briefed so that he could start to help the man through what would be a slow and painful recovery period.

The Gulfstream's crew had been handed over to the Organized Crime Division of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department, who had been very interested to know what the two men could tell them about the Yakuza's illicit flights in the luxury jet. As expected, the plane's transponder had been interfered with to hide the true nature of its journeys. There had been some discussion about what to do with Wo Fat's body and it was decided that it should be held at the mortuary at the U.S. Naval Base for the time being.

Steve couldn't care less, all that mattered was that he had custody of Freddie's remains and had requested that they were placed into a proper military transportation coffin, which was in turn draped with the American flag. He would be Commander Hart's official military escort for his final journey home. The personnel at the base provided him with the camo green Navy Working Uniform, known as NWU Type III. Steve dressed in his uniform after he had showered and shaved. It didn't have his name badge, but at least he was appropriately dressed for his solemn task. He also had the Champ toolbox in his possession, but really didn't know what to do with it now that much of what his father had been investigating was known to him. He decided to stash it back in his garage, for all he knew there might be evidence in it from other cases and he could need it again one day. Once the plane reached its cruising altitude Steve finally slept - comforted by the fact that his friend was close by, even if only in spirit.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

As the hulking C-17 Globemaster III cargo plane made its stately progress high above the ocean with the sleeping man, the situation rooms back at JBPHH and Five-0 HQ were buzzing with activity, even though it was very late. Chin had hopped on his motorcycle and travelled back to the Palace to re-join his teammates, as he could be of more use to them there at this stage of the operation. The photographs of Wo Fat's fake prisoner transportation had been securely sent to the Task Force as soon as SEAL Team 9 had landed in Japan.

Kono had called Greer via secure video link and forwarded the photos to the CIA agent. Gabrielle had examined the pictures and declared them just what she needed to pique the interest of Daiyu Mei. After the two ladies had discussed the next phase of the operation she thanked Kono and ended the communication. The rookie turned to Chin and Danny as they walked over to join her at the surface table, "Wow, she's great. If anyone can reel in the fiancée, it's her! I can see why Steve suggested her for this mission." The two men agreed, she certainly appeared to be a very capable agent. They had been given permission to share the identity of the CIA mole with Gabrielle, as it was considered to be mission-critical intel ahead of her contact with Daiyu Mei.

Greer had not been able to hide her shock, which had quickly turned to anger. Both she and her colleagues, Miller and Hennessy, had been sent into dangerous situations on the direct orders of the man. How many of their missions had been compromised - potentially making any of them vulnerable to capture, torture or death? She thought back to her latest assignment, in which she had been forced to leave her safe house in a hurry. She had only just got out of there in time and put it down to bad luck, but maybe Jonathan Kray had sold her out to the highest bidder?

Chin took in the tired faces in front of him and ordered the team to go home and get some sleep. He already knew that Steve was on his way back to Pearl Harbor and was due to land just after 10 a.m. the next morning, in the meantime the best thing that they could do is get some sleep and make sure that they were all well-rested before the second phase of the mission was put into motion.

Back in China, Gabrielle had recovered from the initial shock. She settled down at the hotel bar, nursing her drink. She didn't want to have more than one as she had a big day ahead of her tomorrow and would need to have her wits about her. She ignored the admiring looks she was getting from a couple of the single men in the bar. She wasn't in the mood for company and while she was thinking along those lines she wondered what to do about Tom Hennessey. He had been flirting with her the last couple of times that they had seen each other and she accepted that she was entirely to blame. She had started it during that dinner in Shanghai when she was trying to make Steve pay her some attention. Tom was a good guy, but he didn't pique her interest. This then made her question what did pique her interest, she got to wondering just how much money Jonathan Kray had made from his nefarious side-deals. She was willing to bet that he had set himself up to have a very comfortable retirement indeed. Would that be something that she could also look forward to if she spent the rest of her career inching up the ladder in tiny increments and playing by the rules? That was assuming that she didn't suffer a career-ending injury first, something that was all too common in her line of work. Her disgust of Kray then turned on herself as she berated herself for even thinking like that, but those very first seeds had been sown in her mind. With just the right set of conditions then it was inevitable that they would flourish and grow.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

After being awake for nearly 30 hours straight, Harry had snatched a few hours sleep during the latter stages of the operation and had missed the Team's successful withdrawal from North Korea. He cornered his Dad in private - normally he made a special effort to not draw attention to the fact that Captain Brown was his father, not wanting anyone to think that he had achieved his current rank because of nepotism. But today his need to know that Steve was okay overruled his normal caution. Eddie checked that no one was paying them any attention and then spoke to the worried man, "It's okay, Son. Steve provided Joe with a brief sitrep when he landed at USFAY. The mission was a success. Wo Fat and his men are all dead and his compound destroyed, same for Dark Sun and Ji-Woon - no casualties or even injuries to SEAL Team 9. Steve recovered the body of Commander Hart and is on military transport back to Pearl as we speak." Harry's shoulders dropped in relief as he let go of his nervous tension, he had been more on edge than he realized,

"Oh, thank God . . . wait, he's got Freddie with him?" Harry's mind was racing, "Is anyone making arrangements for their arrival? Have you informed the family yet? Commander Hart's body should be received with the care and dignity that he deserves. What about the funeral – is that being planned?" Eddie smiled fondly, his son had a big heart,

"Calm down, you'll meet yourself coming back at this rate. Yes to all of the above questions. I thought you might want to be part of the welcoming committee, along with Lt. Rollins." Harry looked pleased,

"Catherine's going to be on the tarmac?"

Eddie replied, "Yes she is and so are you. You look wrecked, go and grab a few more hours of sleep before you fall down and then get yourself to the Hickam flightline before wheels down at about ten hundred hours. Our boys got a ride home in a C-17."


	37. Saying goodbye

**Chapter 37**

Steve hadn't thought about contacting Freddie's family before boarding the plane and so when he disembarked at Pearl he was surprised to see Freddie's parents, Kelly and the baby in front of the main building to the side of the runway. They were too far away for anything other than a wave, but he resolved to speak to them as soon as possible. He turned to take his place next to the cargo plane so that he could salute the coffin as it was unloaded, when he stopped dead in his tracks. Standing in a precise line in their Navy full dress uniforms were Catherine, Harry and Joe. Then next to Joe stood Danny, Chin and Kono, dressed in sober black suits or, in Kono's case, a simple black dress and matching jacket. A myriad of emotions passed across his face before he gathered himself and took his place in line next to Catherine. She took his hand and discretely squeezed it for a second while keeping her eyes forward. The Navy officers saluted in perfect unison as the coffin slowly passed in front of them on its journey from the plane. Tears threatened to fall from Steve's eyes, but he controlled the strong emotions and kept them at bay. He was overwhelmed by the presence of the most important people in his life, who had come to support him when it was so very badly needed. He had spent so many years dealing with tragedy on his own that he wasn't used to having a support network and the feeling it gave him inside was difficult for him to properly explain.

When the grave moment had passed and Freddie's coffin had been loaded onto the airport truck and taken away, Catherine turned to Steve, "Hey, Sailor – you brought him home, I knew you would," she reached behind her and passed him a neat parcel, "your uniform for the funeral – we planned it while you were flying back from Tokyo, we thought that Freddie had waited long enough." Steve pulled her into a fierce hug and whispered his thanks into her ear. He stepped back and shook hands with Harry and Joe, not needing to say any words to express his thanks to them both, a silent moment shared between them all. He made his way to the Five-0 team who were still standing solemnly in line,

"Thanks guys, it means a lot to me you being here−" and then he was interrupted as he was pulled into one bone-crushing hug after the other. If a few tears were shed then no one was telling.

Steve approached the building and stopped just short of the Hart family. He didn't know how they would react to his presence, after all, if not for his insistence on having Freddie join him on that fateful mission then their son would still be alive. Freddie's parents were very important to him, acting as stand-in parents at his graduation ceremony when he had no one to be there to see him stepping up onto the stage to receive his trident. He had swallowed his pride and invited his Dad and Mary Ann, but neither of them had attended in the end. The people before him were the ones who had cheered and clapped as the coveted emblem was pinned into place on his uniform. Mrs. Hart pulled him into a hug, "Oh, Steve," is all she managed to say before choking up. Mr. Hart stepped up to shake his hand,

"Thank you for bringing our boy home, Commander." Steve started to express how sorry he was about Freddie's death when an unexpected voice cut him off,

"You're not to blame, Steve. Freddie loved the SEALs but was under no illusion about how dangerous it was. You were a brother to him and he loved you . . . and so do we." Kelly couldn't continue anymore and threw herself into Steve's arms. They hugged for a little while, Kelly's tears flowing freely. When Steve was able to speak again, he addressed Freddie's dad,

"Why are you having the funeral in Hawaii? I just assumed that you would want Freddie to be buried at home on the mainland." The older man shook his head,

"No. Freddy made his wishes very clear. He told us that The National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific was the most beautiful place that he had ever seen and that if anything was to happen to him then this is where he wanted to be buried . . . besides, having Freddy here gives us an excuse to come and visit our favorite island boy." Steve managed a watery smile before turning to the baby in the pram. She was awake and stared at him in interest. Kelly scooped her up and passed her over to Steve,

"Look Sophia, it's your Uncle Steve," the baby cooed and tried to grab Steve's hat in her chubby little hand. He was mesmerized and laughed as he held her carefully to his chest,

"A beautiful name for a beautiful little girl," he looked at Kelly, "I'm an uncle to another very special little girl as well now, only she's a bit older than this one. She's the 7 year old daughter of my Five-0 partner, Danny." Steve passed his phone to Kelly and she got busy flicking through all the photos he had of Grace. They were all just looking at a lovely shot of Steve and Grace floating side by side on surfboards when they were interrupted by Catherine, she lightly touched Steve's arm to get his attention,

"We need to be making a move, you still need to get changed." Steve nodded in understanding and passed Sophia over to one very eager grandmother. He promised to talk to them after the funeral and then followed Catherine to her car. She turned just as she reached the vehicle, "You're gonna have to get changed at the cemetery, you can use the back seats – I promise not to look." Steve gave her a wicked smirk,

"Look all you like, Lieutenant. It's nothing you haven't seen before." She snorted and chucked an electric shaver in his direction so he could remove the small amount of facial hair growth that had appeared since his freshen up in Japan.

The funeral was solemn, dignified and very moving; Steve and Catherine both feeling the weight of their loss when the gun shots rang out. When Kelly was handed the folded-up flag she couldn't keep in the sob that she had been trying to supress and Freddie's father laid a hand of her shoulder in comfort. They may had lost a much-loved son but at least they had gained a daughter and wanted her to know that. Steve glanced at baby Sophia – he would give the little girl Freddie's dog tags when she was older and able to understand. He had made a promise to Freddy to tell his daughter how much her Daddy loved her, even though his friend only ever got the chance to see his unborn daughter on an ultrasound image while she was still in the womb.

Steve spent a couple of hours talking to the many people who had attended the funeral and followed through with his earlier promise to talk more to the Hart family. Danny, Chin and Kono had come over to join the group and were taking great delight in recounting some of Steve's more outrageous stunts. Unlike the man's Navy missions, most of their cases were not classified and so could be shared freely. Steve did his best to justify his actions, but could tell from the expressions on everyone's faces that he was fighting a losing battle.

When Danny shared the tale of how the SEAL had used a grenade to blow open a reinforced door in a pawn shop when they were on the trail of modern-day pirates, Steve realized it was a completely lost cause. Danny's arms were moving as fast as his mouth as he recreated the incident in vivid detail, "It was like a scene from Die Hard, we came back into complete carnage amongst the smoking ruins of the shop." Steve's eye roll was almost as impressive as Danny's tale,

"Oh come on, it only blew the door off its hinges - there was hardly any other damage!" The articulate detective was shocked into stopping speaking for a beat but quickly recovered his momentum,

" _Hardly any damage_ ," he parroted very slowly, "are you being deliberately obtuse, Steven? The place looked like a bomb had gone off . . . oh wait, a bomb did go off!" At this he clapped his hand on his partner's arm and turned back to the assembled group around them, "I even offered to get him professional help _and_ to pay for it. Not that this trigger-happy Rambo took me up on my very generous offer."

"In my defense," started Steve, "I did ask the pawn shop owner to open the door very nicely and gave him ample opportunity to avert such drastic action." Danny just shook his head in wonder,

"There is no defense. In civilized society one does not use military-grade incendiary devices to open doors."

Like all great warriors when finding themselves in an untenable position, Steve gracefully admitted defeat and just soaked up the little bit of levity on what had otherwise been a very sad day.


	38. The net is closing in

**Chapter 38**

Agent Greer slipped out of Daiyu Mei's room, having successfully embedded tracking bugs in her laptop and tablet. Gabrielle smiled to herself, the CIA really did have the best gadgets although her friend in Homeland Security had got her hands on some good stuff recently – maybe an agency move was in her future as she was finding herself becoming increasingly disillusioned with the Company. She let herself back into her room and got to work syncing her laptop to the bugs; everything that the lawyer typed into either device would now be captured and tracked. However, she was still missing the woman's main means of communication and urgently needed a ploy to get her hands on her cell phone – Gabrielle had been observing her target from a safe distance but hadn't seen her leave her cell unattended for a second. She frowned as she considered various strategies, when a thought came to her – smirking, she scrolled through her contacts until she reached the one she wanted and sent a quick text.

Greer sat across the room from Wo Fat's fiancée in the packed hotel restaurant. A young waitress briefly caught her eye and Gabrielle gave her a barely perceptible nod of her head. The girl gracefully weaved her way between the tables, stopping to refill the guest's water glasses when she saw that they were empty. When she reached Ms. Mei's table, she stumbled and poured the whole jug of iced water over the table and into the woman's lap. Ms. Mei jumped up with a loud shriek, brushing off the icy water as best as she could. Her mother rushed around to help her, berating the clumsy waitress at the same time. The daughter joined in the abuse, calling the poor girl all the names under the sun. The rest of the restaurant had ground to a halt, all eyes on the scene unfolding before them. The manager bustled over, alternating between apologizing profusely and reaming out the waitress until the hapless girl couldn't take any more and ran from the restaurant in tears, pushing past the other waiting staff who had all frozen in place. After another minute of grovelling, the manager finally calmed the two women down and the restaurant gradually returned to its noisy bustle, the incident soon forgotten.

Greer slipped out of the restaurant, smirking from the satisfaction of a job well done. Back in her room she synced up the latest bug that was now very well hidden in her target's cell phone. She sent an encrypted message to Kono to confirm that all the electronic devices were now under surveillance and granted her remote access to the laptop that was monitoring the bugs. With a happy little sigh Gabrielle decided that an afternoon of pampering treatments in the decadent spa facility was in order. A girl had to take her opportunities when she could, right?

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The Naval Intelligence officers and support staff had their hands full analyzing the data recovered from Wo Fat's command center in North Korea. Harry was like a kid in a candy store, not knowing which sweet treats to pick first. They were uncovering lists of buyers, detailed information on the supply chains and how the weapons were being moved between countries, the identities of the middle men and many hundreds of pages of financial records. Chin had advised the lieutenant to follow the money and that was what he was doing. His first job was going back to just before Operation Switchback, the disastrous CIA mission to capture Wo Fat in Macau. He then scanned all payments going out from the time that Jenna Kaye's intel had first been pushed up the chain of command. It was tedious and painstaking work, but after a few hours he found a suspicious payment of $500,000 that had come out of one of Wo Fat's many 'business' accounts. He only had a bank account number to go on, but it was a start. He picked up the phone and dialled Chin.

Chin ended the call and hollered for the rest of the team to come over to the surface table, or 'the font of all knowledge' as he had affectionately named her, getting quite angsty with anyone who didn't treat his baby with the care she deserved, "We need to trace this bank account, it could be the payment to Kray for selling out the CIA extraction team." Kono nudged Danny out of the way with her hip,

"Move over and let the experts work, Danny," her dimpled smile softened the insult, "you have many skills, Brah, but getting information out of this technical marvel is not one of them." Danny huffed in indignation,

"One day you'll discover that fancy finger work on a bloody machine cannot solve all crimes, Rookie. I have my own sources in the international banking world," and with that the detective retired to his office to make some calls and maybe call in some favors if the need arose.

The account number traced back to a bank account held in a private Swiss bank based in Basel, the bank in question was called J. Safra Sarasin. Chin cursed under his breath. The Swiss privacy laws were brutal and almost impenetrable and they especially didn't respond well to the heavy-handed tactics often employed by American agencies. Danny came out of his office at that moment, "Let me guess, you're just working out how to compel a private Swiss bank to reveal the account holder's details?" Chin groaned,

"This is going to be impossible." Danny shrugged,

"Maybe for a mere mortal, but not when you're Super Detective." At that Kono looked at him in surprise and waited for him to elaborate. Danny obliged, "I have a contact who owes me a favour that works at Sarasin. There's no way that he can divulge the account holder details but I may be able to get him to tell us the dates and times of any recent withdrawals that were made in person. Then we can check CCTV from around the bank and see if we can spot anyone we know."

Kono gazed in awe at the older man, "I think I have just been schooled by a Jedi Master."

Despite their initial optimism, it was now many frustrating hours later and they were no further forward. They had a day and a time for the last big withdrawal just over a month ago but it was proving impossible to get their hands on the CCTV from around the bank in Basel. There were no flight records showing Kray making the journey to Switzerland, meaning he either went in under the radar on a private plane or was using an assumed name. Chin leaned against the table, deep in thought. He slowly spoke, "I might know someone who could help. Do you remember Jerry, my high school classmate?" Kono laughed,

"How could I forget Jerry and his basement of doom? Danny, you're gonna love this dude!" She looked to Chin, "Road trip, Cuz?"

Chin nodded, "Yeah, I've been keeping in touch with him since the murder of Kai Akana – it has really affected him. If you can see past the ludicrous conspiracy theories then there is one smart cookie under all that hair and I know he has contacts all over the world. I'm feeling a bit hungry anyway – I could eat some of Mrs. Ortega's homemade cake." At this Danny perked up,

"Cake, you say? I'm in," he turned to Kono, "lead the way my little Padawan."


	39. Company business

**Chapter 39**

Danny was starting to regret his earlier enthusiasm. Jerry Ortega was certainly an acquired taste and Danny had to tamp down the urge to be brutally sarcastic, knowing that they needed this guy on side if he was going to help them. Jerry could sense that Danny wasn't too sure about him and so stuck closer to Chin and Kono, he was still feeling pretty fragile since Kai had been brutally murdered and didn't need any negativity in his life right now.

He perked up when Chin ran through their problem, glad of the excuse to put his brilliant mind to use; he eagerly told them of a friend who was currently living in the idyllic Swiss town of Lausanne, a beautiful little place nestling on the shores of Lake Léman. Jerry calculated the current time in Lausanne and decided that it would be okay to contact his friend, moving to a private part of his basement to make the call. He came rushing back over to the Five-0 team when the call was over, delighted with what he had to tell them, "Okay, guys – good news! My man can get us footage from a second floor apartment across the road from the bank, he can go back as far as a whole year if we need it," Jerry paused with a little frown, "don't ask how he can get us this. You're not going to tell anyone, are you?" His eyes went wide with worry. Chin jumped in to allay his concerns,

"Relax, Jer. Nobody will ever find out, you have my word – your friend is completely safe." At Chin's comforting statement, Jerry visibly relaxed,

"In that case, let's see what he can dig up for us." The excitable man led the team over to one of his monitors and they gathered around to start the methodical process of scanning all the activity in front of the bank for the day in question.

The team rolled out of the Ortega household uncomfortably full of cake and in possession of damning evidence that placed the rogue CIA Chief at the Sarasin bank right around the time that a large withdrawal was made from the account that had received the payment from Wo Fat. They would send Jerry other dates and times as and when Harry was able to locate any further withdrawals from the Swiss bank account.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Admiral Janderman was deep in thought, processing everything that Joe and Eddie had told him. The mission had been successful beyond his wildest dreams and if anything they now had the problem of too much information to analyze and then act upon. He sighed, now was not the time to let inter-agency rivalry prevent them from systematically dismantling this deadly organization, "Gentleman, I think we can agree that now is the time to loop in the CIA. They have the appropriate resources to tackle a task of this magnitude. The Five-0 evidence linking Jonathan Kray to the Swiss bank account should be enough to have him arrested and compel the Swiss authorities to release the identity of the account holder. If he's been using a false identity as we suspect, then once they have this they can track all his other activity under that name – his financial dealings, travel itineraries, known associates etc." Eddie and Joe were stood in front of the comms link at JBPHH and Eddie added his thoughts,

"Affirmative, Sir. We would have read in the SAD from the outset if not for the mole. That's been taken out of the equation now and so it would be remiss to not make this a joint op at this point," he paused as he thought about the next stage of the mission, "it will also simplify the planned takedown of Daiyu Mei. We have a CIA asset on standby and this is now a civilian matter as we are lacking hard intel that proves this woman is assisting terrorist groups or arming anti-American factions."

The Admiral nodded, "Agreed. Leave it with me, gentleman." The man cut the comms feed and Eddie turned to Joe,

"This is all turning out rather well, Commander. Time to brief McGarrett, I'd like him to be temporarily re-assigned to the Five-0 Task Force to coordinate the next phase of the mission. The CIA asset in place is his contact and Daiyu Mei is a civilian – it's time for the Navy to take a step back."

Joe was in complete agreement, "Can you make the call to Governor Denning and clear it with him? Then we'll be good to go."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Steve came through the large glass doors of the Five-0 offices to find the team gathered around the surface table, "I'm starting to think you lot never leave the office." Danny turned around and took in his appearance. The man was back in his Five-0 'uniform' of cargo pants, tee and over-shirt,

"Au contraire, Steven. We have just got back from a most exciting excursion . . . although I have to concede that I may have eaten too much cake." Danny rubbed his stomach and winced, "So what brings you back to our most humble of abodes, and in civilian clothes as well?" Steve smirked,

"The Governor has approved my temporary re-assignment back to Five-0. The operation to catch Daiyu Mei is a civilian matter and, as of now, we have full access to the considerable resources of the CIA. It is no longer a secret side mission and Agent Greer can loop in anyone she needs to achieve the mission objectives . . . wait, what's this about cake?" The cousins chuckled and proceeded to update Steve about Jerry and the dangers of going to the Ortega household on anything other than a completely empty stomach.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Agent Greer was delighted to hear the news that the net was closing in on Jonathan Kray and, even better, this was now officially a joint CIA-Five-0 operation. She immediately contacted Miller and Hennessy as she would need a little help with the next stage of the mission.

The next day she rapped on the door of Daiyu Mei's suite, "Housekeeping." The door opened after a few seconds and the other woman stared at her in confusion, she clearly wasn't a maid. Gabrielle leaned forward, passing a stack a photographs to the other woman, "Go back into your room and take a look at these. I'm here to help you on the orders of your fiancé, Wo Fat. Meet me in the hotel bar in 1 hour, come ready to travel for a few days." She then hurried back to her own room and fired up her laptop and waited for the inevitable flurry of calls and emails from Daiyu Mei to her associates.

Gabrielle had set herself up in the hotel bar, her ingrained training subconsciously causing her to select a seat with a clear view of all the access points and an unimpeded exit. She had been gratified to see that the lawyer had indeed tried to contact a number of people without much success, as many of Wo Fat's most trusted associates had been killed in the SEAL Team 9 mission or were already in the hands in the CIA – a large number of coordinated raids had been conducted throughout the night on the back of the intel recovered in the Navy op; without having advance knowledge of the impending raids from their inside man, their targets had been sitting ducks. In an increasingly desperate attempt to find out more information about her fiancé, Ms. Mei had contacted a huge number of people within their organization, many of whom were not yet known to the CIA or Five-0. The trace on all her calls and messages was giving the teams a fix on their locations.

Gabrielle was pleased to see that the lawyer had clearly not be around Wo Fat long enough to adopt the same highly paranoid and cautious approach that had kept him hidden in the shadows for so long. At this moment in time she was just a worried fiancée and that was playing right into their hands. The harried woman came rushing into the bar, dragging a small case behind her. She scanned the room, her eyes settling on Greer. She hurried over and took a seat on the barstool next to the CIA agent, "What can you tell me, I can't find out anything? How did you even know that we are engaged? No one knows about me," her voice was panicked. Gabrielle laid a calming hand on the other woman's arm,

"Just take a breath. I can tell you all you need to know, but you have to calm down first." The stressed-out woman nodded and sucked in a few deep breaths. When the CIA agent was satisfied that she was calmer she continued, "Wo Fat's mole in the Company was compromised and he gave up your fiancé to save his own skin. An elite joint CIA-military strike force was dispatched and they extracted him from his bunker in North Korea, right under the nose of Han Ji-Woon and the Dark Sun militia group. The pictures show him being transported by private plane back to the U.S. Naval Base on the Hawaiian island of Oahu. Commander McGarrett was killed in the crossfire. As far as I know all of Wo Fat's men were killed, have you been able to contact anyone?" Ms. Mei vigorously shook her head and was only one step down from wailing as she replied,

"No, I can't get hold of anyone who knows anything - what are we going to do?"

Greer leaned over the table, "That's where I come in. Wo Fat put in place a fail-safe in the event he was captured. I've been working with him for years - but no one knew, not even Jonathan Kray, and that was the whole point. Kray can't tell the CIA anything about me or you, because he doesn't know about us. I promise you that you're safe. We're going to get your fiancé out of custody, but we have to do it now and do it fast before we lose our window of opportunity." The other woman nodded, wide-eyed with panic from the situation she was finding herself in,

"Oh thank God you're here. I wouldn't have known what to do." Greer gave her a grim smile,

"You wouldn't have ever found out what happened to him. In a few days your fiancé will be transferred to a Black Site and never heard from again, just like his father. We still have time to get to him before that happens. I have contacts on Oahu, I know where he's being held by the Navy." Gabrielle waved her arm at Daiyu's luggage, "Grab your bag, I have a private plane waiting for us. We have to stay off the radar, Wo Fat was adamant that nothing would ever track back to you." The two women hurried out of the bar and into a taxi that the doorman summoned for them. They arrived at the private airstrip 30 minutes later and Greer navigated them through the rudimentary customs checks, providing flawless false passports for them both. She led the other woman to the steps of the private jet, the same Gulfstream G550 which Steve had commandeered to fly out of North Korea. Daiyu looked at the tail number and stopped dead, she was aware of all of her organization's assets,

"This is our plane, I'm sure I recognize the registration number." Greer nodded,

"Wo Fat just had time to alert his pilot before the compound was overrun. They brought the plane here on his orders, ready for your extraction. He couldn't risk you boarding a commercial flight that could be tracked . . . Wo Fat had a lead on the location of his mother's body, by the way. When we get him back safely, we'll recover her remains and give her the proper burial that she deserves." The other woman replied,

"Yes, he told me – he was so excited to be finally getting somewhere after so many years of not knowing. It must've been just before he was captured." The luxury jet's pilot and crew member were waiting to greet them, both men eagerly accepting the deal offered by the Tokyo police – their cooperation would be viewed very favourably by the prosecution. Agents Hennessy and Miller were already aboard and Greer made the introductions, "These are my associates. I pay them very well for their services and they can be trusted. Together we're going to get your fiancé back where he belongs."


	40. The Sting

**Chapter 40**

Five-0 had plenty of time to prepare for Daiyu Mei's arrival on their island. It was a long flight, made even longer by the need for the private jet to make additional stops for refuelling, as even the superior range of the Gulfstream could not cover the distance from Shanghai to Honolulu in a single journey. Agent Greer was going to encourage the worried woman to reach out to the local Yakuza on the island to help them extract Wo Fat from Navy custody. Hiro Noshimuri was out on bail and they wanted to be able to implicate him in enough crimes to ensure that he spent the rest of his life behind bars. If they could also reel in a number of high-ranking Yakuza members, then so much the better.

With access to satellite imaging provided by the Navy, Five-0 had eyes on the plane from the minute it touched down at Dillingham airfield. The lawyer had obviously been busy during the flight, as the jet was met by two large black SUVs containing Yakuza lieutenants. Hiro was not present, but they guessed that the occupants of the plane would be taken to meet him now. Greer went with Mei, but Miller and Hennessy stayed behind and got into a car that had been dropped off at the airstrip by a local rental company. The bugs in Ms. Mei's electronic equipment could also be used for covert recording and Kono was ready to activate them to record the conversation between the Yakuza and Daiyu Mei. There was only pleasant chit-chat for the duration of the car journey, the men were obviously leaving the important conversation to their boss.

The cars pulled up outside the heavy gates of Hiro's opulent property in Diamond Head. The gates slowly swung open and the vehicles disappeared from view. Kono was following progress purely from the live recording and it was soon apparent that Daiyu and Gabrielle were being greeted by Hiro and his most trusted associates. Hiro gave a warm welcome to Wo Fat's fiancée, he obviously had been aware of their relationship but had never met the woman before now or been privy to her real name. Wo Fat had used an alias for Ms. Mei when he had informed Hiro of his impending wedding. The team at Five-0 HQ listened intently to the conversation. Hiro immediately offered the use of his considerable resources to help free Wo Fat and Greer chipped in with the location of the man, together with the security measures that would be in place.

She explained that it was very fortunate for them that he was not being held on the base, as that would have been too risky to breach. Instead the Navy were using an off-site facility that was remote with very low-key defenses, so as not to draw attention to its existence. She explained that her associates were in the process of securing specialist surveillance equipment and the floor plan for the facility and would meet them ahead of the raid. Hiro had been delighted to hear about the 'demise' of Steve, declaring it good for business – the unafraid and relentless man had scared him, he did not follow the same rules as HPD and that made him very dangerous. His brother Kouji had already paid the ultimate price for the man's dogged interference in their business.

Mr. Noshimuri agreed to provide all the necessary men and fire power for the ambush, very pleased that the formidable Wo Fat would now be in his debt and that was something that could be called in at a later date. His guests were offered drinks while he continued to make arrangements and bark orders – all captured for posterity via the covert listening device unwittingly brought into the house by Daiyu. It was getting late by this point and so the Yakuza boss made the decision to carry out the ambush at first light and offered the use of his guest rooms to the two ladies.

Miller and Hennessy drove directly to Five-0 HQ, Steve very pleased to see his CIA friend again. They came up with a game plan between them, Steve having already selected a suitable location for the 'fake' imprisonment of Wo Fat. He had copies of the facility's blueprints and aerial photos that showed plenty of activity around the site. They had staged these using Navy special operators on a training exercise for authenticity. Miller and Hennessy would take these back to Hiro that night and offer their services as expert snipers and demolition specialists, on Greer's recommendation. The two men would 'take out' the visible guards who would be posted outside the disused military installation. They would coordinate via comms so that the guards dropped at the right time and played dead. This would lure in the Yakuza ambush team, who would then be flanked by SWAT and Five-0. Greer would take responsibility for Daiyu Mei, using the ruse of keeping her away from the action 'for her own safety' and then take her into CIA custody. The CIA had a plane on standby to transfer the woman to one of their Black Sites, where she would be interrogated and then charged. The information on her devices had been extremely incriminating, directly implicating her in controlling the financial aspects of the organization - not to mention her actions since Greer made contact.

Steve was humming with nervous energy as he waited for word that the Yakuza soldiers were on their way. There was only one road suitable for vehicles in and out, and they had this covered by HPD officers hidden in the trees. Anyone who stayed with- or made it back to the vehicles would not get away. Suddenly the comms crackled into life and Steve signalled to the others, "Everyone look sharp. Convoy is 10 minutes out."

Shortly afterwards four SUVs sped down the track in close formation, skidding to a halt out of sight of the old military building. The men poured out of the cars, grabbed their weapons and started to fan out. The two undercover CIA agents shouldered their rifles and made quick time through the trees and set up their sniper positions so that between them they covered all of the guards on duty in front of the building. They stealthily put in the comms earpieces that Steve had provided and quietly confirmed that they were in position. Hennessey took point, "On my signal, guard number 1 down in 3, 2, 1 . . ."

Between the two 'snipers' all the guards were dropped in less than 20 seconds. Hennessy switched to his other comms and confirmed the kills and gave the all clear to the Yakuza soldiers. All of Hiro's men started to move in and had converged on the building when Steve gave the order. The SWAT officers and Five-0 Task Force moved swiftly into position, shouting at the Yakuza men to drop their weapons. They froze like deer in car headlights and then one of the men panicked and lifted his rifle to fire. The closest SWAT officer shot him once in the leg and the man immediately dropped to the ground, clutching his bleeding limb in agony. That seemed to focus the attention of the remaining men and they dropped their weapons and surrendered. Steve jogged back to the SUVs and found that the two drivers who had stayed back with the vehicles had already been placed under arrest by the HPD officers without a single shot fired. He pulled out the rest of the Five-0 team, leaving HPD and SWAT to secure the prisoners and arrange transportation back to the station.

Steve had coordinated with Duke Lukela to carry out a concurrent raid of Hiro Noshimuri's residence to arrest the man and anyone else on the property. The audio recording from the previous evening had been enough to persuade a judge to sign off on a search warrant and the house was being thoroughly searched by a team of Duke's best officers. Steve hoped that Hiro's arrogant over-confidence would result in them finding more incriminating evidence to use against him.

Danny sensed Steve's edgy mood and moved closer to the man, "What's up? Your spidey senses tingling, huh?" Steve frowned, not able to properly explain what he was feeling,

"I dunno, I can't help but feel we've overlooked something." At that, his comms crackled and Joe White's voice came over the radio,

"Commander McGarrett, I've just been advised by the CIA that Jonathan Kray is no longer in their custody. He overpowered the agents bringing him in and is in the wind." Steve swore under his breath before answering his CO,

"Copy that, Sir. How long ago was this and where were they at the time?" Joe continued,

"Over 6 hours ago now. He was on Maui when the agency got a lead on his location and sent in a Grab Team. The initial op went smoothly enough and he had two large suitcases in his possession with what they estimated to be about $12 million in cash. From what they can tell, it looks like Kray managed to convince one of the agents to help him and the other two agents were shot trying to prevent them both from escaping. The agents are both alive, in serious but stable condition. Kray spent a lot of time on the Hawaiian islands earlier in his career – he's got contacts and a whole load of cash to buy his way out of trouble. If he gets off the islands then we may never catch him."

Steve rubbed his forehead and scrunched up his face in frustration, "Commander White, is there any chance he knows about the situation with Wo Fat and Daiyu Mei?" Joe scowled,

"It's certainly possible. We read the Company into the op a couple of days ago and passed over the data we recovered from Wo Fat's bunker. Kray could still have backdoor access to intel or someone on the inside may be feeding him information."

Steve made a snap decision, "Sir, I'm taking the Five-0 team to the extraction point at Dillingham airstrip – I've got a really bad feeling about this." Joe had learnt to trust Steve's instincts, which were some of the best he had ever seen,

"Roger that, Commander. Watch your six."


	41. Follow that jet

**Chapter 41**

Steve quickly briefed the team and they split up into the Camaro and Kono's Cruze. Steve knew Kono would keep up, she drove just like he did. They set off down the rough track, keeping the speed of their convoy down until they reached the main road. As soon as their tires hit the smooth tarmac, Steve and Kono both elected to use their blue lights and sirens to warn the other road users and wasted no time in flooring it towards the private airstrip.

Greer had driven Daiyu back to Dillingham, telling her that Wo Fat would be brought to them and they needed to be ready to leave in a hurry. She relayed a message from Miller to the other woman, "They've breached the building where your fiancé is being held and are searching for him. They have the blueprints and so they know where to look. It won't be long now." The soon-to-be Mrs. Fat smiled nervously in relief,

"You'll let me know the minute they find him?" Greer nodded and kept driving. On arrival at the airfield, she parked up and hopped out of the car,

"Grab your stuff, let's board the plane. We can't afford any delays." She stepped back from the car and readied her gun. The minute that Daiyu got out of the vehicle, Greer trained her gun on the woman, "Hands where I can see them, you're under arrest." The other lady looked shell-shocked and just stood there with her mouth open. Greer commanded, "I said let me see your hands. _Right now_." Finally she complied and lifted her arms above her head. Gabrielle moved in closer, expertly spinning the confused lawyer around and securing her hands behind her back with zip ties. She communicated with her CIA team via her in-ear comms, "Package is secured. Ready to move out."

Another agent confirmed that the CIA transport was ready and at the same time a truck came out from behind the buildings and stopped next to the two women. The passenger jumped out of the pickup and grasped the prisoner firmly by both arms. He steered her into the back of the truck and Greer climbed up into the passenger seat. She turned to address the driver and froze in place - sitting there in the driver's seat was Jonathan Kray. She stared at him before speaking, carefully weighing up all her options, "While I think you're a complete piece of shit, I wouldn't mind some of the money. Give me a cut and she's all yours - we've got what we need out of her anyway. I'll still get my promotion."

The other agent in the back of the truck caught Kray's eye and gave a subtle shake of his head, he just assumed that Greer was bluffing to get them off-guard. He knew that she had her gun on her, he had watched as she stowed it safely back into her holster before she got in the pickup. He reached forward and very carefully extracted the weapon thus leaving her unarmed and completely vulnerable. The corrupt Chief stared silently at her with what looked like sorrow before shooting her once in the stomach. Gabrielle cried out in pain as the bullet ripped into her body, clutching her stomach with both hands. The blood seeped out from between her fingers as she tried in vain to staunch the bleeding.

Her ragged breathing was the only sound in the truck until Kray turned to Daiyu Mei and spoke, "Your fiancé is dead. He was killed in a Navy SEAL op and they destroyed his North Korean bunker as well as the Dark Sun base of operations. The Navy and CIA have access to all of the data on the computers from his command room. You know where all the money is and you're going to get to it before they do – Wo Fat once told me that he had over $200 million stashed away. I'll let you keep half of the money and you can go and live in luxury and have a wonderful life. You'll need it to stay under the radar, they've got enough evidence to put you away for a very long time." He didn't wait for an answer and slid the transmission into drive and drove the short distance to the plane. He ignored the CIA jet and instead pulled up alongside the Gulfstream G550. The pilot and crew member whom he had freed from the custody of the CIA were more than willing to fly him wherever he wanted to go, already making plans to disappear themselves when they landed - the large amount of cash that they had been offered for their services would certainly make it that much easier.

The agent in the back of the truck pushed out the bound woman in front of him and manhandled her up the steps and onto the plane. Kray turned to his passenger, "I'm sorry, Agent Greer – it wasn't meant to go like this. I just wanted enough money to have a nice retirement." Gabrielle choked out a reply,

"I hope you rot in hell!" she couldn't manage any more, blood bubbling out of mouth as she spoke. Kray looked away,

"I didn't kill the agents who were waiting on the plane, they're tied up and stashed in the luggage hold. You'll be okay when you get to a hospital, just like the other two agents I had to shoot on Maui." The man quickly grabbed the two suitcases and awkwardly lugged them up the plane steps. The other agent leaned out of the door to grab one and pushed it into the cabin. The pilot had started the engines and signalled the other crew member to secure the plane door.

The bleeding agent looked out of the truck window and caught a glimpse of the Five-0 cars speeding towards the airfield. She smiled to herself, _"Her knight in shining armor to the rescue - go get him, Steve."_ Her head lolled against the window as she slowly lost consciousness, her last thought being that she really hoped Steve put a bullet right between Kray's eyes.

The two cars entered the airfield at high speed, the Camaro sliding sideways as Steve gunned the engine. Danny grabbed the 'oh shit' handle, "Steady, we're no good to anyone if we die in a blazing inferno whilst trapped inside a massive car wreck." Steve gave him a grim smile, his face a picture of intense concentration,

"Not gonna happen, not if I'm driving," he saw the luxury jet taxiing towards the single runway, "shit, they're getting ready for take-off . . . hold on, Danno."

"No, no, no. I don't wanna hold on! What the hell are you doing?" Steve stamped down on the accelerator pedal and chased after the plane as it started to rumble down the runway. Steve edged alongside the moving plane and when he was in front he violently turned the wheel to skid the car to a halt directly in its path. Danny scrunched his eyes shut and started to pray aloud as the pilot anchored on the brakes and brought the jet to a complete stop, just inches from the Camaro. Steve was already out of the car, his gun drawn and trained on the pilot. He motioned to the man to cut the engines and open the plane door.

Kono screeched to a halt near the jet, leaping from the car with her weapon raised. The Five-0 team took cover under the plane while Steve gave them orders. Nodding in understanding, they took up their respective positions. Kono slipped back to her car and took her rifle from the lockbox. She smoothly assembled the weapon, sliding each component into place with practiced ease, then laid down behind the car; if she twisted slightly then she had a clear view of the Gulfstream's windows. She steadied her breathing and waited to take the shot. She was soon rewarded for her patience, the figure of a man visible through one of the rear windows. Exhaling, Kono lightly squeezed the trigger and the crack of the rifle shot echoed around the airstrip. Panicked yelling could be heard from inside the private jet.

Steve had instructed Danny and Chin to take cover with eyes on the plane steps, but not to try and board the jet, "They'll pick you off the second you go near those steps. I'll gain entry via the luggage hold and herd them your way." Danny just stared at him,

"What, you're gonna get your massive Rambo knife and saw your way through solid metal?" Steve rolled his eyes,

"Don't be ridiculous, Daniel. I'll just undo the access hatch bolts with this . . ." and with that he extracted a comprehensive Leatherman's multi-tool from one of his many pockets. He brandished it in Danny's face and then disappeared with a smirk. The detective couldn't help but smile as he turned to Chin,

"And of course he comes prepared for a little light aircraft maintenance." The two teammates waited in place and after a few minutes heard a commotion coming from the plane, followed by gun shots. The occupants of the jet came clattering down the plane steps and whirled around in panic when Chin and Danny showed themselves and shouted at them to surrender. The three men threw down their weapons and dropped to their knees as instructed.

Danny barked orders at them, "Hands behind your head, interlock your fingers and cross your legs." Between him and Chin they soon had the men zip-tied and laid face down on the tarmac. Danny waited with the prisoners and gestured towards the plane, "Go finish this, Chin."

The older man nodded and cautiously made his way up the steps. He dipped his head into the cabin to clear the area before he entered. Steve had secured Kray and was wrapping a towel around his shoulder to stem the flow of blood from the bullet that had been fired from Kono's rifle.

Daiyu Mei was slumped in a seat, her hands still fastened behind her back. She had been shot in the head and stared forward with lifeless eyes. Steve provided his teammate with a concise report, "Kray killed her in his panic when I popped up behind him. I put him down with a shot to the leg." It was then that Chin noticed a second towel wrapped around the rogue Chief's leg. Steve continued, "I need him to be in almost one piece for the CIA, I imagine there's some critical intel that they want to get out of this piece of shit. I'd put money on him still getting help from someone inside the agency."


	42. Flatlining

**Chapter 42**

Chin had called for backup as soon as he knew that they were heading for Dillingham. He looked up from the captured prisoners to the welcome sight of a sea of flashing blue lights coming down the access road towards the small airfield. In a matter of minutes, Five-0 were being relieved by HPD and a team of paramedics and Steve's eyes were drawn to a flurry of activity around a truck. He ran over and his breath hitched as he recognised Gabrielle as she was being strapped onto a gurney. He muscled in between the paramedics and one of them chided him, "You need to give us space to work, Sir. Can you tell us her name?" Steve stepped back a bit with a mumbled apology and replied,

"Agent Gabrielle Greer, age 32, blood type O neg." The paramedic raised her eyebrows at the detailed report, but carried on intubating the woman,

"She's been shot once in her stomach and has lost a lot of blood - are you riding in the ambulance with us?" Steve shook his head,

"No, she needs to be at Tripler, they have more experience with GSWs. It's too far by road. I'll get us a helo and fly us there." The other paramedic looked up in surprise, never in her life had she known someone to commandeer a helicopter to take a patient to hospital if a medevac wasn't available,

"Um, can you do that, Sir?" Steve nodded,

"I'll clear it with the Governor if I have to. Get your gear ready to load," and with that Steve ran over to a nearby helicopter tour operator booth. There was an old man in the booth and he had just been quietly sat in his comfy old deckchair watching all the commotion with interest. He hadn't been this entertained for years, normally just dealing with bookings from the same old tourists for the same old tours. Steve flashed his Five-0 badge and explained his predicament. The old man stroked his white beard,

"Take it, Brah. We all need to kokua, yeah? You look like you've done your fair share of that. I'll arrange for someone to go the hospital to fly it back later today." Steve smiled warmly at him and thanked him profusely before running to the helicopter and starting his pre-flight checks. HPD officers had been called over to help the paramedics with their essential medical equipment and between them they soon had the patient, the two paramedics and their equipment loaded into the back. It was a tight squeeze, the chopper not designed for medical transport, but between them they made it fit. Steve wasted no time in taking off and got the short flight to Tripler Army Medical Center underway. He called Joe White on the way,

"Sir, we apprehended Kray – he's on his way to hospital by ambulance, two GSWs but not critical. HPD are providing a police escort. They're taking him to Tripler, can you inform the CIA? He's their problem now." Joe frowned at the sound of the helicopter,

"Where are you, Commander?" Steve replied but couldn't keep the emotion out of his voice and Joe immediately picked up on his distress,

"The bastard shot Gabrielle, I'm taking her to Tripler by helo now – she's losing a lot of blood. Can you clear me for landing and have a trauma team on standby? Normally all that would be done by the medevac crew, but I borrowed an island tour helo and the paramedics are both busy working on Greer." Joe was quick to reassure Steve, dropping his formal title – his protégé needed a friend, not a CO, at this moment in time,

"I'll clear it, Steve . . . they've got the best surgeons on the island there, she couldn't be in better hands, Son."

"Thanks, Joe. Can you get hold of Agent Hennessy and let him know what's going on." He disconnected the call and glanced back at the scene behind him. The paramedics were worried, that much he could tell from their tense body language and the looks that passed between them, but at least the downed agent was still breathing. And that gave her a chance.

When Steve landed there was a blur of urgent, but not chaotic, activity. Gabrielle was very quickly transferred onto a hospital gurney and taken straight into surgery. A nurse firmly put her hand on Steve's chest to stop him coming any further into the restricted area, "You can't do any more for her, Commander McGarrett. Captain Nakamura's an excellent surgeon, your friend is in good hands," and with that she turned and followed the team of medics into the operating theatre.

He was waiting near the nurse's station when Tom Hennessy came rushing into the hospital. Steve gave him a succinct sitrep. Tom cursed, "That bastard! I'm gonna kill that piece of shit." Steve noted the shocked stares from the other people in the vicinity and gently steered the irate agent into an empty room,

"As tempting as I found that option myself, we need him alive. He's got other contacts inside the agency, we need him to start naming names." Steve squeezed his friend's arm, "Gabrielle's one tough cookie and if anyone can pull through, it's her." Agent Miller ducked his head in the room at the moment,

"Ah, you're both here. Any news on Greer?" Steve shook his head, last he had heard it was going to be a while,

"No, nothing. Last time I asked the nurse told me it was a complicated surgery and not to expect to hear anything for a few hours. What's happening with Kray?" Miller spoke up,

"Both GSWs were through and throughs, he's having the wounds cleaned up now and is receiving antibiotics and fluids. We should be cleared to transfer him into custody in the morning and he has an armed guard until then. When he's been interrogated he'll be charged with espionage and murder−"

Tom cut in, "Gabrielle's not dead yet!" His partner laid his hand on the agitated man's arm,

"No, Hennessy – that's not what I meant. Kray shot and killed Daiyu Mei during his escape attempt. He'll also face multiple charges of attempted murder for the two agents on Maui, as well as Greer. He'll get life in prison without parole – he's gonna die seeing nothing but the same four walls for the rest of his miserable life. We have pretty good leverage to get him to talk," at that the man's mouth twisted into a grim smirk, "after all, the relative _comfort_ of prison accommodation can vary quite a bit, if you know what I mean."

Miller left the Tripler medical facility to oversee the arrangements that would lead to Kray's arrest, he needed to go to HPD HQ to verify all the evidence that had been collected to date. As they were dealing with an American national on U.S. soil then this would now become an FBI matter and Miller had been assigned to the case as the CIA liaison. Tensions were running high within the agency and they wanted to provide the FBI with as much incriminating evidence as possible to ensure that the corrupt agent who had sold them out to terrorists and shot 3 of their own would be going down for life.

HPD sent an officer to take Steve's statement so he didn't have to leave the hospital before they had word on Greer's condition. Steve recognized the officer and addressed her by name, he had started to talk to all of the officers on duty at the Palace whenever he came into Five-0 HQ and knew quite a few of them by name now. Noting the relatively low-key police presence at the Palace, he was formulating an idea to pitch to the Chief of Police to offer an advanced training session for SWAT and HPD, where they would simulate an armed take-over of Iolani Palace - it wasn't too much of a stretch to imagine that it could happen, considering the high-profile criminals who were often guests of the 'blue room'. Some of these scumbags were very well-connected and may have 'friends' who would be prepared to risk it all to break them out. Steve knew that the Navy would be willing to lend them a team of special operators to play the role of the bad guys, as it would be a good training exercise for everyone. SWAT and HPD would gain valuable insights into potential security weaknesses and the Navy would see how things were done in a civilian setting.

After the police officer had left, the two men talked while they waited for news - Tom admitting that he had been making some tentative first steps towards a more-than-just-friends relationship between himself and Gabrielle. He had been emboldened by her subtle flirting during the dinner with the three of them in Shanghai and had been waiting for his current assignment to be finished before he was going to just bite the bullet and ask her out on a date.

Steve was gutted for Tom, he couldn't imagine how he would feel if something happened to Catherine after all the time it had taken to finally admit his feelings for her. He cursed to himself - neither of them were getting any younger and they were in a dangerous line of work, what the hell were they doing dancing around their feelings like they had all the time in the world? He resolved to man up and expose some of his inner feelings that he normally kept locked up like bloody Fort Knox. He slouched into the chair, letting his head rest on the wall behind and closed his eyes. He didn't like to relax his iron-grip control on his emotions, having learnt the hard way that people let you down if you let them in. But that was before he came back 'home' and met the people who would become his ohana; before he discovered that his Dad hadn't sent him away because he didn't love him enough and before he found a surrogate family in the shape of the Brown family. Steve hoped that Catherine hadn't been deployed since the funeral, he wanted to say all of this to her in person, not over a satellite link. His musings were interrupted by a nurse entering the room, "Gentleman, please could you come with me."

The two men jumped up and followed the nurse as she led them up to the surgical suite. A couple of minutes later the doors swung open and the doctor wearily walked over to them. Before he even opened his mouth, Steve just knew and immediately placed his hand on Tom's shoulder in support. Tom hadn't picked up on the non-verbal cues and was looking expectantly at the surgeon for news. The tired medic spoke, "I'm so sorry, we did all that we could but we lost Agent Greer on the operating table." Hennessy staggered back and Steve supported some of his weight to keep the man upright,

"No, no! She's got to be alright . . . she's got to be alright . . ." he trailed off in despair, his voice turning to a whisper, "what am I gonna do?" Steve just held the distraught man, keeping his own feelings in check. He was devastated too, but right now Tom needed him to be strong.


	43. The Governor knows

**Chapter 43**

Governor Denning placed the phone back into the cradle and reflected on the conversation that he had just had with the Director of the CIA. Margaret Thompson had been very complementary about the JBPHH-Five-0 joint operation and Commander McGarrett in particular. A dangerous international arms dealer and militia group had been permanently put out of commission and the intel that had been shared with the CIA had led to dozens of take-downs across Asia - disrupting one of the biggest weapons rings that they had ever seen, including the seizure of bomb-grade nuclear material that had been on its way to Hawaii. They had been able to trace and apprehend the buyer, a man called Kurt Hoeff, and he in turn had given up his client. A high-level traitor within her own agency had been exposed and captured and the threat of very unpleasant prison accommodation had loosened his tongue and he was busy providing the names of all the people to whom he had ever supplied classified information, as well as the names of his inside contacts in the Company. Once they had names, it hadn't taken long to expose the money trail between all of the players.

The agency had started to analyze the information lifted from Daiyu Mei's electronic devices and that was leading them to even more key people within the organization and millions of dollars in bank accounts all over the world; they were up to nearly $100 million and weren't even halfway through their analysis. It was the biggest catch for the CIA in years and certainly wouldn't hurt the agency when budgetary decisions were being made in the White House. The wily woman had made a less than subtle attempt to ascertain Steve's current employment status, clearly coveting the man for the CIA's SAD.

Of less interest to the CIA, but of great significance to the State of Hawaii, was the dismantling of the local Yakuza - headed up by the seemingly respectable Hiro Noshimuri. Damning evidence had been found in a secret room at his house by an eagle-eyed HPD officer who wondered why the size of the room inside didn't match the location of the walls outside. They had discovered a treasure trove of illegal business dealings - all meticulously hand written and carefully filed away in a room with floor to ceiling custom-made cabinets, organized by year. The man had not trusted his secrets to computers and the paper records went back to the 1970s. Pay-offs, hits, arms and drug deals, human trafficking, prostitution, money laundering, gambling rings, protection rackets . . . the list went on. They were uncovering a comprehensive employee list of everyone who had ever been part of his organization and on the payroll since the early 1970s. The real kicker was finding that Hiro had thoughtfully recorded the names of everyone he was paying off to turn a blind eye or act as an informant and that list was extensive – spanning HPD officers and dispatchers, government and housing officials, Halawa guards and respected senior business leaders. Denning had requested the name of the officer whose sharp observational skills had uncovered the hidden room and made a mental note to speak to the relevant committee – Officer James Keoki would soon be receiving a Governor's commendation, a great honor indeed for the young man.

The Chief of Police had already requested that a special division be set up to deal with what had been uncovered. Sam had readily agreed and reached out to Organized Crime Divisions across Japan, knowing that their expertise in taking down organized crime syndicates, known as bōryokudan, would be invaluable. He made sure the Chief was aware of Osaka-based Detective Marlon Kelly's role in the operation and idly wondered if the man fancied a transfer back to Oahu. He thought back to the circumstances that had made the search warrant for the raid possible in the first place – he knew the sting had been conducted as a direct result of Commander McGarrett and Five-0's actions and that HPD would never have got to this point without them.

His mind was made up, he was damned if he was going to let the Navy or the CIA get their hands on Commander McGarrett – the man belonged to the State of Hawaii in his role as the head of the Five-0 Task Force. Denning paged his assistant and asked her to set up a meeting with Lt. Kelly for later that day.

An hour or so later, the lieutenant sat in the Governor's office trying not to fidget as the man looked him over. He had tried to think what the man might want, perhaps an update on the operation to bring down Wo Fat's deadly empire? Sam Denning finally spoke, "Lt. Kelly, how are you finding your new role as head of Five-0?" Chin was taken by surprise by the left-field question,

"In what way, Sir?" Denning clarified his previous question,

"You've achieved much success with your last case, which included cooperation with SWAT and HPD, as well as working with the Navy and the CIA. It was incredibly complex, but yet all the individual activities were coordinated in such a way that the overall mission goal was accomplished. It was a very impressive first case in your new role as head of Five-0."

Chin took his time digesting the Governor's statement and sighed, "The Task Force has a track record of successfully tackling complex cases, but I should tell you that it was Commander McGarrett who took the lead on the operation. We wouldn't have been able to achieve the end goal without his leadership, knowledge and contacts in both the Navy and the CIA. Whilst all of the individual Task Force members at some point played an instrumental role in the success of the mission, I can't in good conscience take the credit for the successful outcome of this case." Sam nodded thoughtfully,

"Just out of interest, Lieutenant, have you moved into the master office at Five-0 HQ?" Chin shook his head. Denning gave the man a knowing smile, "And why is that?"

"I'm not really sure – it still feels like Steve's office." The Governor nodded again and cupped his chin in his hand,

"Do you want it to be the Commander's office?" Chin reflected on this question for a minute or two, not rushing his answer,

"The Hawaiian islands are very different to the mainland, we have such a strong connection to the ocean and the Navy - our location is of huge strategic significance for the whole of the Pacific region. After all, it was no random act of violence when it was Pearl Harbor that was targeted for the very first strike against the U.S. during WWII. It feels right having someone who understands that to head up Five-0. While it was an honor to be considered capable enough for the job, I believe that someone who has special operations expertise can take it to its full potential. If I'm completely honest, I will run it as an extension of HPD but with much more latitude. Steve will run it as a Task Force in its own right . . . you know, I would like to have my own Task Force one day but just not this one. Five-0 will always be Steve's creation."

Governor Denning sat back in his chair with a smile. He addressed the other man, "I have been reflecting on the events of the last few days and have come to a very similar conclusion. However, I wanted to hear your thoughts on the matter, without pressuring you to tell me what you _think_ I want to hear. I would never move forward with my plan to re-recruit Commander McGarrett without your complete approval." Chin sat up in his chair at this,

"You want to get him back?" Denning just smiled,

"How do you rate my chances, Lieutenant?" The other man laughed,

"Give me a day to put Operation Reclaim into action and then I'd say your chances were better than average."

Sam joined in the laughter, "I'm glad we understand each other, Lieutenant. Just one thing, I'm going to make a monthly lunch meeting with the Chief of Police part of your official duties – I'll leave it up to you to justify Five-0's methods to the man!"


	44. Promotion

**Chapter 44**

Steve stood next to Tom as the coffin containing Gabrielle's body was loaded onto the CIA plane. Tom would be accompanying her back to DC, where he would meet Greer's parents and help them arrange the funeral. When they had a date organized, Steve would fly over for the service to pay his final respects. Steve started to speak, "Look, man – I'm so sorry for dragging you all into my mess. This would never have happened if I hadn't involved Gabrielle−" Tom interrupted Steve at that point,

"No way, you don't get to internalize the guilt and put all this onto yourself. If you hadn't stirred all this up then we never would've identified Kray as the mole. He was directly responsible for all of our missions in Asia – Gabrielle only just got out of her last assignment by the skin of her teeth. We would have ended up dead eventually, when the traitorous bastard next decided to sell us out for a payday," Tom checked Steve was taking it in before he continued, "she didn't die because of anything that you did. She died because that piece of shit decided that money was more important than the lives of his own people . . . I was up most of the night thinking about all of this, it could've been me or any number of the people I care about lying in that coffin. The agency just doesn't feel the same anymore. I'm probably going to hand in my resignation when I have seen to the funeral and had some time to just think about things."

Steve pulled him in for a one-armed hug, "They'll always be a spot for you on Five-0. I could square it with Chin and the Governor." His friend smiled,

"Thanks, man – but what about you? Is there still a place for you on Five-0?" Steve shook his head,

"I couldn't do that to Chin, he's earned his spot as the leader of the Task Force. Besides, my new role at Pearl isn't so bad – I still get to sleep in my own bed most nights." Tom chuckled despite his mood,

"Try not to sound so enthusiastic, you might even convince yourself." Both men turned as they were informed that the plane was ready for departure. With a final hug they went their separate ways; Tom up the steps of the plane and Steve back to JBPHH.

No one seemed to be around in the situation room, so Steve went looking for Harry in his usual office. He found the industrious intelligence officer at his desk, clacking away with deadly intent on his keyboard. Steve clapped him on the back,

"Careful Lt. Brown. You wouldn't want to do yourself an injury." Harry rolled his eyes,

"Just because I'm not dropping out of the sky on a HALO jump with 50 kilos of equipment strapped to me doesn't mean that I'm not making a difference, _Commander_." Steve smirked and checked that no one else could overhear him before slipping into a more informal greeting,

"You don't have to tell me that, Harry. Without your intel we wouldn't have achieved half as good a result as we did," Steve eased himself into an office chair and used his feet to wheel it across the floor so he was next to Harry, "that reminds me, I still have a tracking chip in me like an unwanted pound dog. Do I need to visit the medics to have it removed?"

Harry laughed, "It's not sale or return, you know. They can't use it for anything else now that it has been in you." He suddenly looked concerned, "Is it causing you any problems?" Steve was quick to reassure the younger man,

"No, nothing like that. I don't even know it's there." Harry looked relieved,

"Oh that's good. Well, in that case we should leave it in place – this particular device has been tested for extended periods of time _in situ_ and we might just be glad of it one day. You know, when you next get targeted by a deadly international arms dealer with an insane vendetta who is seeking revenge on you and your family." The SEAL chuckled darkly,

"I'm hoping that there's not going to be a next time . . ."

The men were interrupted by Commander White as he ducked his head around the door,

"Ah, Commander McGarrett. A word, if you please." Steve hopped up from the chair and, with a nod goodbye to Harry, followed Joe down the corridor and into an empty office. Joe motioned for him to take a seat and waited for him to get settled, "Outstanding work, Commander. Admiral Janderman is a very pleased man and I can tell you that's not a situation we get to see all that often." Steve supressed the smirk that was trying to get out at that remark,

"Thank you, Sir." Steve sat in silence, waiting for his CO to continue.

Joe duly obliged, "It is my intention to recommend you for promotion based on your performance evaluations and outstanding achievement. It could be viewed as a little early based on your time in service, but I believe that the Selection Board would review the application favorably . . . but before I did that, I wanted to know your intentions for the future. A promotion to a Senior Officer grade would require certain sacrifices from you – most importantly you would be unable to have any control over where you would be stationed. You would be deployed at a moment's notice to wherever the op dictated. I appreciate that your recent return to Oahu might make this more of a consideration than it perhaps would have been a year ago."

Joe stopped talking and observed the man sat in front of him. A number of emotions flitted across Steve's face as he processed the information for a few minutes and Joe didn't rush him. Steve pondered on Joe's bombshell. Part of him felt absolutely delighted; he had been focused on his career from the moment he had enlisted, never happy to just be coasting along – his relentless drive pushing himself to the limit to ensure that everything he did was to the very best of his ability. One of the most visible outcomes from this driven approach was a steady series of promotions to a higher ranking officer each time. But did he want to sign his soul over to the Navy, because that was what he would essentially be doing. In return for the promotion, they would control almost every aspect of his life again. He huffed to himself, this would have been such a no-brainer a year ago. Before the fateful mission with Freddie, before that god-awful gun shot over the phone and, last but not least, before Five-0 and his new extended ohana. He had rushed his last major career move, making a split-second decision in the heat of the moment and didn't want to do that again,

"Permission to consider the offer, Sir? May I get back to you with a decision tomorrow?" Joe nodded once, understanding how much was riding on this decision for the man,

"Permission granted. We'll meet at zero nine hundred hours when I'll expect a decision from you. You are free to leave the base to consider your options until then." Joe watched Steve leave the room and wondered what his protégé would decide, but swiftly came to the conclusion that it was just too close to call.

Steve had left the base and was driving back to his house when his cell phone rang. He flicked the accept button and waited for the person to speak. When they did he slightly swerved the wheel in surprise and was forced to make a slight correction to stay in his lane,

"Commander McGarrett? This is Margaret Thompson, Director of the CIA." Steve would've stood to attention if he wasn't driving at the time,

"Yes, Ma'am. How may I help you?" The lady gave a little smile to herself,

"Actually, it may well be the other way around, Commander. I am proposing that we meet when you are stateside for Agent Greer's funeral in a few days . . . I was terribly sorry to hear about her death, especially given that it was by the hand of a fellow agent." Steve composed himself, getting choked up at the mention of Gabrielle,

"Thank you, Ma'am. I would be available to meet either before or after the funeral, as soon as I have a confirmed date."

Director Thompson replied, "Excellent, I'll have my aide set something up once we know more and he will communicate the details to you in due course . . . oh and thank you for your exemplary work on our recent joint operation. Although you have created rather a lot of work for my agency, just tracking the money is occupying two full teams." Steve gave a little snort,

"I take it that it's good work though, Ma'am." She smiled,

"That it is, Commander. That it is."

As Steve drove the rest of the way home the journey was a blur. It wasn't every day that the Director of the CIA called you personally to say thank you and ask you for a meeting. He was amazed that she had even taken the time to find out who he was.

The first thing he did upon getting home was to kick off his boots and go straight out back. He stood on his lanai and wondered if it was too short notice to get everyone round for a cook out, they may already have made plans for the evening; then he faltered, remembering his promise to Gabrielle to have her meet the team while he grilled her a steak on his BBQ. Feeling the need to surround himself with friends he started texting and soon had a raft of replies, many in the affirmative with promises to bring drinks, sides and desserts.


	45. Ohana rules

**Chapter 45**

His house came alive with the buzz of activity, just about everyone had made it including the full Five-0 team, Kamekona and all of the Brown family. Kono and Chin had both brought someone; Kono had a rather nervous-looking Charlie Fong from the Crime Lab in tow and Chin was accompanied by Laura Hills, the ex-aide to Pat Jameson, as the lady who had done her best to help Steve had been cleared to leave the safe house.

Steve was most excited about Catherine being there though, she was still on Oahu and had managed to swap her duties with a colleague so she could leave the base for the night – as long as she reported for duty by zero seven hundred hours the next morning then she was okay. Danny had Gracie with him, having persuaded Rachel to grant him the evening with his daughter. Rachel had been impressed with the Commander's respectful handling of the sordid situation involving the racy pictures, ever to be known as 'Photogate', and didn't want to deny Grace spending a bit of time with her Uncle Steve. The mother in her was very aware of how Mattie's sudden disappearance had affected her little girl and was only too happy for Steve to be a substitute uncle. Steve had already insisted that they stay the night in the guest rooms and then Danny would drop Grace off at school in the morning.

Steve could barely make his way into his kitchen past all the people in his house and nudged up against Catherine as he retrieved more supplies from his refrigerator. She smiled at him, "Hey, Sailor," but then her smile faltered and she lowered her voice so that only he could hear what she was saying, "how are you, Steve? I'm so sorry about Agent Greer, I know you were close once." Steve looked surprised and Catherine clarified her previous remark, "She told me about it when we were stationed together a little while ago. I kind of get the feeling that she thought it would bother me, but why would it? It was long before you finally plucked up the courage to ask me to the Army-Navy Gala at West Point." Steve smiled at her,

"Don't know what took me so long . . . hey, can we have a proper talk later tonight?"

"Of course, but right now you have a house full of hungry guests to feed so get back out there and man that grill." Steve dipped his head,

"Yes, Ma'am." Catherine laughed,

"Don't you Ma'am me, it makes me feel old." Steve gave her a little smirk as he left the kitchen and managed to get in the last word just before he ducked back out,

"Yes, Sir."

Once Danny was satisfied that Grace was being well looked after by Kono and Charlie, the three of them currently engaging in a very ambitious-looking sandcastle building project, he sauntered over to the grill and started sorting out the meat and fish for Steve. The two of them easily settled into a well-practised routine developed over the course of a number of these cook outs. Danny glanced over to the other man,

"How you holding up, Steve? Been a manic few days, huh?" Steve gave him a wry smile,

"You'd think I be used to people dying in the line of duty by now . . . but it doesn't get any easier." Danny quickly spoke,

"Hell no, Steve. The minute you start getting used to it is your cue to walk away. There's nothing wrong with letting all this get to you. I just wanted to let you know that you have people who care about you, even if you are a giant schmuck, people you can talk to."

"Thanks, Danno . . . wait, _giant schmuck_?" Their gentle bantering carried on as Steve cooked the meat and fish on the grill. In the background, tables were set and a veritable feast appeared upon them. The rest of the evening passed in a happy haze of eating and lively conversation. Steve caught Grace trying to stifle a yawn and went over to the little girl, crouching down beside her, "Ready for bedtime, Gracie." She shook her head vigorously,

"No way, Uncle Steve. I'm not tired at all, not even a tiny little bit." Steve gave her a wide smile,

"Is that so? Then I must've been mistaken when I thought I saw you yawning just now." Grace leaned against him, she couldn't lie to her Uncle Steve,

"Okaaay, maybe just a really little one. But I'm not tired. Honest!" Danny came bustling over at this point,

"Tired or not, it's a school night and it's already way past your bedtime. Say goodnight to the nice people," he scooped her up in his arms with familiar ease,

"Goodnight, nice people!" Grace parroted with a happy wave, leaning back over his shoulder as he carried her into the house and up to the guest room. Steve had dug out some old toys which had belonged to Mary, guessing that she would like them. Her face lit up at the large assortment of dolls and cuddly toys which had been neatly lined up on her bed. Danny smiled fondly, _"God help that man, his military precision even extends to arranging toys on a bed,"_ but he was touched by the thoughtfulness that Steve had shown in doing his best to make the room more welcoming for his little girl. When she was settled, he kissed her goodnight and re-joined his friends out on the lanai.

The Browns were making a move, all of them going to meet old friend of the family for drinks at the Hilton. Kamekona followed them out claiming he needed his 'beauty sleep'. Danny had chipped in with, "Not enough hours in the night to make you beautiful, big man!" The hulking entrepreneur had glowered at him,

"Keep it up, little haole, and I'll revoke your 10% discount on shave ice."

Danny had not been able to contain his incredulous snort, "I don't get a 10% discount." Kame had conceded the point,

"Yeah, well . . . if I did implement a special law enforcement discount for my crime-fighting brothers and sisters then you won't be getting it."

Charlie and Laura had both driven themselves over to the house at Chin's request, he had an important conversation to have with his former boss and wanted it to be just between the team. They both took this as their cue to leave, thanking their host for a lovely evening. Steve clapped Charlie on the arm and gave Laura a quick kiss on the cheek and waved them both off.

Chin waited for everyone to settle back down into their chairs before speaking, "So, Steve. Do you know what you're going to do now this case has wrapped?" Steve frowned as he recalled his conversation with Joe earlier that day,

"Um, about that – Joe told me that he is recommending me for promotion to Commander, to be considered at the next Naval Promotion Board." Catherine cut in,

"Oh my God, Steve. That's huge! You've not completed the normal number of years service to be even considered for senior officer grade." Steve had been looking at Catherine as she spoke and so missed the looks of disappointment on the faces of everyone else. Kono piped up, trying to inject some false enthusiasm into her voice,

"That's great. So, when will you hear?" Steve looked over to her,

"Well, Joe hasn't done anything yet. He's waiting for my answer tomorrow morning." Catherine looked at him aghast,

"What's there to think about? I'd kill to have someone pushing my name onto the list for a promotion!" Steve looked back in her direction,

"I don't know if it's what I want at this moment in time. This last year has been hard but I've got a home here, people I'd miss if I was deployed for months on end. I've been coming to the conclusion for a while that the Navy isn't the most important thing in my life anymore." Catherine looked surprised but kept quiet, sensing that he needed to tell them more. "Maybe I want to stop travelling to the far corners of the earth and just settle," he waved his hand in the general direction of the spectacular sunset casting its vivid colors over the ocean, "and this is as good a place as any to choose – would you just look at that . . ." Everyone followed his lead, taking a minute to soak in the beauty that they could see in front of them.

Kono tentatively spoke again, "So . . . you might not leave?" Steve shrugged,

"I'm gonna have to talk to the higher-ups at Pearl, see what might be available on the island that wouldn't have the constant deployments−" Chin cut him off,

"Or not. There's a perfectly good task force right here that needs a leader." Steve stared at the man in surprise,

"I'm not about to steam in and oust you, Chin. That wouldn't be right!" Chin smiled,

"But what if I wanted you to? Not to mention the Governor, he's desperate to have you back as leader of the Task Force. Five-0 is your baby, Steve - it always will be. We all want you back at the helm." Steve saw the earnest expressions on the faces around him. Kono smirked,

"So, what do you say? Will I be in a position to start calling you 'boss' again, Boss?" Danny leaned over at that point,

"I'm missing an out-of-control Neanderthal partner, Chin just doesn't do it for me," he turned and smirked at the older man, "no offence," and then stage-whispered, "plus I'm sick of having to drive my own car everywhere – but will never admit to that ever again, not even under torture."

Steve looked at them all and just drank it in for a moment, this was his team and he couldn't stop the beaming smile coming across his face, "Well, when you put it like that it would be rude not to accept," he addressed Chin, "are you sure the Governor said that? This is Governor Denning we're talking about, right?" They descended into helpless laughter and Kono jumped out of her chair to envelop Steve in a huge hug. She released him and glanced across at Catherine,

"Um, sorry about groping your man like that." Steve barked out a laugh,

"I don't think Catherine has anything to worry about on that front, we all saw you with Charlie tonight . . . and you too Chin, making nice with the lov-er-ly Laura. It's all going on!" The team continued to banter, everyone delighted with the turn of events. That is except Catherine, she was silently fuming at Steve for turning down such a big opportunity for career progression. How could he be happy to just settle for a civilian task force, where he would never be able to move through the ranks? She resolved to talk him out of his reckless decision as soon as she got him alone.


	46. Lost love

**Chapter 46**

Catherine had to wait a few hours before she and Steve were finally alone in his bed together. She propped herself up on her elbow and took in the man beside her, he was lean and muscled in all the right places and was a hell of a lover. She was also irresistibly drawn to his energy and that ferocious drive that made him exciting and dangerous. But until now she had not really seen this other side to him, the part of him that craved stability and family. He had just finished telling her about how this past year had changed everything and was forcing him re-evaluate how he wanted to spend the new few years of his life. While he was talking, she had quickly revised her earlier plan to get him to change his mind - it was becoming increasingly obvious that his priorities had changed and what right did she have to project her own career aspirations onto him?

Slowly she was beginning to realize that what he was trying to say was did she want to take their casual relationship to the next level. In his own hesitant way, he was tentatively exploring the possibility of something more permanent. She deliberated on that for a minute, their current situation was just right for her. She was still chasing her next promotion, but was finding it hard to get involved with the right kind of high-profile operations that got you noticed. She didn't like to admit it, as jealousy was a very ugly emotion, but couldn't help feeling envious that Harry had been on the Wo Fat op and not her. He'd done a tremendous job and it had not gone unnoticed, she'd put money on his name appearing on the next list of candidates for consideration by the Promotions Board. Catherine still had a lot to do with her life, she loved the travel and the excitement of high-octane operations; being the one to connect that vital piece of intel that changed everything. Whole teams of people were putting their lives in her hands and the responsibility both scared and energized her. She couldn't imagine settling down at this stage of her life or even in a few years time. Lt. Rollins had a life plan that didn't have any room for a relationship that couldn't be on her terms.

Steve was looking at her expectantly - she knew it was hard for him to open up and share his inner feelings although if anyone was going to get a peek at his more vulnerable side, it was her. It had always been her. Catherine was suddenly terrified of having so much power over this wonderful man, she was going to have to let him down very gently. She looked right at him, wanting him to understand her side of things, "I'm really glad that you have found a place and people that are making you happy, no one deserves it more than you . . " Steve could hear the unspoken 'but' before it came and steeled himself for Catherine's next words, "I might want this as well one day, but not just now. I have so much that I want to do," she corrected herself, "no it's more like I _have_ to do. There's this need in me that I can't control, I have to make something of my life that is bigger than me, or you or even the Navy. I can't explain it, I've always wanted to be part of something amazing." She paused, not wanting to see the crestfallen expression on her lover's face but knowing that she had to face him, he deserved that much from her, "We both used to want the same thing, but something's changed for you and that's fine. It just hasn't changed for me . . . I really like you Steve, more than perhaps even you realize and I'll always care about you. If you need me, I'll come running but I can't commit to a relationship where you need something that I can't give you. It's not fair on either of us."

Steve felt a rush of rejection and instinctively wanted to lash out, but forced himself to take a breath as he tried to listen objectively to Catherine's argument. It wasn't her fault that he suddenly wanted something different - just because his own circumstances had changed didn't mean that Catherine should change to fit in with them. His attention was taken by her finger tracing patterns on his chest, "How about one for the road, Sailor?" As tempting as her offer was, he thought it would just confuse things even more. He gave her a sad smile and pulled her into a hug instead and gently stroked her hair. She was soon soothed to sleep but he lay awake and quietly cried for the loss of a relationship that he had hoped could have turned into so much more.

Catherine had to be up even before Steve's normal early rising time if she was going to get herself sorted and back on base, ready to report for duty by 07:00. She gently eased out of bed, careful to not disturb Steve. She looked fondly at him as he slept, if circumstances had been different then she could have seen them having a lifetime together. She leaned over and placed a gentle kiss on his head and whispered, "Goodbye, Sailor." He stirred slightly but slept on as Catherine walked out of his bedroom and out of his life.

Steve arrived back from his morning swim feeling physically drained from pushing himself to the limit, going far faster and further than usual. He had hoped that his furious pace would do something to ease the pain but as he stood in his kitchen preparing breakfast, he wondered just how he was going to put his shattered heart back together again. His quiet contemplation was rudely interrupted by Danny bustling into the room with Grace in tow. She was all dressed for school, but her hair needed serious attention. Danny was loudly grousing about the complicated French plait that his daughter had requested, "I can't be expected to make that," he pointed dramatically over to Grace's unruly hair, "look like this," and brandished his tablet with an image of an immaculate braid showing on the screen. Grace just gave her Uncle Steve a resigned 'What you gonna do' face. He noticed that she had brought down one of the teddy bears from her bed, that one had been Mary's favorite as well.

Steve's heart did a little flip at the normality of it all, without even realizing it, his partner was providing just the distraction that Steve needed to stop himself wallowing in self-pity. He looked at the picture with raised eyebrows, it was a hair-based work of art and most certainly not to be attempted by an amateur. He whispered conspiratorially to Grace, "If I were you, Gracie, I'd settle for pigtails today. Leave that sort of complex hairdressing to the professionals, like your Mommy." She pursed her lips, thinking it over,

"I think you're right, Uncle Steve – Danno, may I have pigtails today, please?" Danny mouthed a silent thank you to Steve and quickly tamed her long hair into neat pigtails. He tied her bows with a flourish,

"Perfection! Even if I do say so myself." His daughter giggled and hopped up on a stool at the work counter,

"What's for breakfast, Uncle Steve." The man in question smiled back at the little girl,

"How do pancakes sound?" She clapped her hands in delight,

"Can I have chocolate chips, pur-leese?" Steve smiled at her indulgently and nodded with a laugh. Her father observed the interaction with a keen eye, she really did have the big bad Navy SEAL twisted around her little finger. He hoped that the hardened criminals on the island never found out about this soft side to his partner, as the crime rate would rocket.

Once breakfast was over Danny went in one direction with Grace to drop her off at her exclusive private school, paid for with Stan's money. Steve fired up his truck and set off the other way, back to the Naval base for his conversation with Commander White. He rehearsed what he was going to say in his head, not wanting to appear ungrateful to either his mentor or the Navy.

After their conversation, Joe watched Steve walk out of the room feeling strangely pleased for the man. His substitute son was finally finding himself a home and surrounding himself with people who genuinely cared about him. It had been a long time coming, after so many years of keeping his emotions tightly locked up – his personal coping mechanism to deal with the events that had unfolded when he was only 15 years old. After the formal part of the conversation, Steve had confided in Joe that his relationship with Catherine was over; he had tried not to let his feelings show but Joe could see how much he was hurting. His mentor was deeply saddened to hear the news but also relieved that Catherine had been up-front with her own feelings and not tried to string Steve along once she realized how different their life goals had become. He couldn't hold it against her, she had every right to make her own choices.

Joe sank back into his chair with a deep sigh, he was inadvertently adding to Steve's misery by the whole mess that was the Shelburne situation. He cursed Doris McGarrett, she had reeled him in after hearing about her husband's murder and played on his connection to John. She had apparently been an active asset for the CIA for all these years, operating under the radar on the most clandestine of assignments – she was a dead woman, after all. But then she had gone into hiding after Wo Fat ordered the death of John McGarrett. She no longer trusted the CIA, believing there to be multiple moles within the agency, and had turned to the only person she trusted to help her stay 'disappeared'. He had hated himself for lying to Steve, knowing instantly that the perceptive younger man could tell that he was not giving him the whole story. He sat up with a start, angrily coming to his feet. This had to end, he resolved to speak to Doris and have it out with her now that Wo Fat was dead and his entire organization was being systematically dismantled.


	47. DC politics

**Chapter 47**

Steve had to accept his position back as the head of Five-0 over the phone, as he had just received a text with the arrangements for Greer's funeral and would need to leave on a flight to DC later that day if he was to make it in good time. The Governor had been very interested to hear that the Director of the CIA had requested a meeting with the man and ended the call with a very firm instruction for Steve, "Just make sure that the redoubtable Director Thompson knows that you're very much employed by the State of Hawaii, Commander." Steve had chuckled before he replied,

"Absolutely, Sir. She wouldn't have had any luck anyway, a career with the agency is just not for me."

Steve made his flight with no delays, his Five-0 badge smoothing his passage through the airport. The flight back to the mainland gave him some much needed thinking time. He had yet to tell anyone about his mother still being alive or his plans to dig up the Cambodian field at the site indicated by the mysterious coordinates. He resolved to share everything with his team as soon as he got back from DC and hoped that the old adage of 'a problem shared is a problem halved' would ring true.

Tom was waiting for him in the arrivals hall and they were soon on their way to their hotel for the night. Steve updated Tom on everything that had been happening over the last few days and the CIA Agent was delighted that Steve had gone back to Five-0. He sensed the change in his friend and told him so. Steve nodded in agreement, "I've spent so long never being in one place long enough to put down roots and that was a conscious decision on my part. But this last year, man – I don't know how to explain it, but everything's changed and I like having a house to come home to every night and people who will just drop by for no particular reason. It sounds a bit trite if you're not an islander, but having my ohana around was the only thing that got me through all of the shit that has happened." Tom listened with interest, not used to Steve being so open with his feelings and he decided to reciprocate,

"I'm not in such a dissimilar position myself. After years of clandestine missions you just start isolating yourself from people – it's not like you can tell them what you do. I feel that I have two lives and I'm sick of having to compartmentalize all the time. Maybe that's why I was so drawn to Gabrielle, she completely got it and I didn't have to worry about letting anything slip . . . God, I was getting so sick of it all and then to find out that your boss is a lying scumbag traitor . . ." Steve leaned over and placed his arm around Tom's shoulders,

"Hey, I get it. It's okay to feel angry as hell. Just promise me this, Tom – when you have had time to think everything through, give me a call. There are so many good career options for someone with your knowledge and experience. If you don't want to give Five-0 a try then I can help hook you up with some ex-SEAL buddies who have a good thing going on here in DC with their private security business." Tom gave him a weak smile,

"Thanks, man. I'll do that . . . look, do you mind if I call it a night? I'm bushed and I want to be okay for the funeral in the morning." Steve squeezed his shoulder,

"Sure thing. I'll see you in the morning. Try and get some sleep."

Tom had very carefully planned the funeral arrangements with Gabrielle's parents, it all went off without a hitch and was quietly dignified. Steve was wearing his full dress uniform and had also been one of the pallbearers along with Tom and Greer's brother and father. He was gratified to see such a large turnout, a smattering of Gabrielle's work colleagues as well as friends and family. He made a point of talking to a number of the attendees, knowing a few of them from his joint Navy SEAL-CIA SAD missions. He stuck close to Tom, offering unobtrusive support to the man throughout the proceedings. When the last of the mourners had left, he hugged his friend and made him promise to keep in touch.

Steve caught a cab to the upmarket DC restaurant suggested by the CIA Director, who had thoughtfully noted that he would be in need of a good lunch after the funeral. He scanned the tables and recognized the woman from a photo he found on the CIA website, having never met her in person. She stood up at his approach and shook hands before gesturing for him to take a seat in the sumptuous leather booth. It was very private in their corner of the restaurant and so they were able to talk freely, "Thank you for meeting me, Commander. I wanted to talk to you in person, it is quite a delicate matter." Steve frowned and leant forward in his seat,

"Of course. Can you tell me what this is about, Ma'am?" Margaret nodded,

"In the course of interrogating Jonathan Kray he revealed a number of his contacts within the agency. One of them works out of the Oahu-based office and Kray only ever knew him by his first name, Sam. A little bit of digging turned up Agent Sam Turner – he has been with the agency for years and has knowledge of a number of past missions. He specifically had intel on an asset with the code name Shelburne and had obtained this from an ex-agent who was dropped by the agency some years ago. His name is Edward Cobb." At this Steve cut in,

"That is very personal to my family's history and was something that Wo Fat was trying to uncover right before his death. He believed that Shelburne was responsible for the botched assignment that led to the death of his mother." The Director pursed her lips,

"And he would be right. I'm not proud to admit it, but it was an unsanctioned hit ordered when Cobb was the unit Chief. He had a newly recruited agent, with the code name Shelburne, get close to a person of interest and then plant a bomb in their car. In a tragic mix-up, the target's wife took the car and the bomb detonated before the mistake could be rectified. The agent was not cleared for wet work such as this, they were only just out of training and were completely unprepared for an assignment of this nature. When the mistake was discovered, Cobb arranged for the car and body to disappear, thus hiding all evidence of the agency's involvement. A substitute car was quickly arranged and a fatal car accident staged, with a body taken from the nearby morgue. It was hoped that no one would ever find out. Cobb was quietly 'let go' and the agent was cleared of any wrong-doing when it became apparent that they were only following what they thought to be legitimate orders from their superior. Please understand that I am sharing this in the strictest of confidence, Commander. This is highly compartmentalized and no one person at the agency is privy to the whole story, apart from myself."

Steve felt a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach, he really didn't like where this was going, "The agent with the code name Shelburne – it was my mother, wasn't it? She was going by the name Sarah Pattison back then. Wo Fat had uncovered almost the whole story, he just didn't know that Shelburne was actually my mother or the name of the senior agent who greenlit the op in the first place."

Margaret looked at him sadly, this was difficult news for the man to take in, "I'm afraid so. As you obviously already know she remained undercover, supposedly to keep on monitoring Yao Fat, but was actually using that as a cover to raise the baby that had been left without a mother because of her botched mission. It was years before anyone realized and took steps to extract her from the assignment. She left the agency very soon after that and as far as I know, led a completely normal life and married your father. That is until she came to the agency seeking help to fake her own death. She had prior knowledge that the Yazkuza had put a hit out on your father, his HPD investigation into their organization was getting far too close. She must have been covertly monitoring them and worked out that their plan was to plant a bomb in his car. It was like history repeating itself – using a body from the morgue to stage a death and nobody being any the wiser. Of course, the agency had her at their mercy then and immediately reactivated her CIA handle 'Shelburne' and used her as a ghost agent – able to undertake some of the most clandestine assignments on our books. She dropped off the grid just under a year ago. The agency has no idea where she is."

Steve thought about the timing, "That's when my father was murdered. I bet she knew exactly who had ordered his murder and that they would be coming for her next. My father made the fatal error of telling Wo Fat about the code name Shelburne. All Wo Fat then had to do was follow it up with Jonathan Kray and then Kray started digging and that led to this Sam Turner and Edward Cobb." Steve made a decision to share all he knew about the field in Cambodia, after all the lady sat across from him had told him everything that she knew, "My father had coordinates for an empty field in Cambodia hidden in code on a toolbox that he was using to store everything that he had uncovered during his 17 year investigation into my mother's 'death'. I believe it's a grave and that Lei Kuan Fat is buried there. With your permission I would like to go there and check it out. I made a promise to Wo Fat that if it was his mother then I would see to it that she received a proper re-burial in the family plot." Director Thompson raised her eyebrows at that,

"What would make you want to do something like that after everything the man did to you and your family?" Steve shrugged,

"It just feels right. As it turns out, our family buried a complete stranger as well so I have some understanding of what it feels like. Wo Fat's mother was an innocent victim – why should she languish in an unmarked grave . . . it's nothing short of disrespectful."

She thought for a minute, impressed by his integrity. With a determined nod she spoke, "Do it, Commander. Just don't tell anyone except your most trusted associates, if it got out what you were about to do then it could put you in jeopardy. After all, the people responsible went to a lot of trouble to cover this up. We'll play our part by weeding out everyone who has assisted Kray and I'll have the FBI start looking into Mr. Cobb - I don't like that he is still meddling in _my_ agency's affairs. That will prove to be a costly mistake on his part . . . I apologize for the mess that we made all those years ago, it's a personal mission of mine to clean up this agency and stop this sort of thing happening again," she paused, "I don't suppose you fancy a career change to our agency yourself, Commander." Steve suppressed his smirk,

"Oh no thank you, Ma'am. The agency is just not for me and the Governor of Hawaii would not be _at all_ pleased. Just between you and me, he scares me a little bit and I don't ever want to find myself on his bad side." The woman laughed out loud, she knew Sam Denning very well and had to agree,

"Ah well. It was worth a try. Perhaps we should look at ways to work more closely with your Task Force when geography dictates it. I'll hook you up with the field office on Oahu, you can see if there are any benefits to a more collaborative approach."

Steve smiled, "That's an excellent idea, Ma'am – I believe greater cooperation will help us both greatly in the future."


	48. A problem halved

**Chapter 48**

Steve sauntered out of the terminal building, just soaking up the warm island air. It had been unseasonably cold in DC, cold wind coming in from the east, and the difference in temperature between the two places was noticeable. He was just about to join the line for a cab with he spotted a familiar figure leaning on the hood of an equally familiar silver Camaro, parked completely illegally in the drop-off only zone. A flash of the Five-0 badge had been enough to send the airport parking attendant scurrying off to find some other poor schmuck to harass. Grinning like a loon, Steve hurried over to the car, "Wow, this is personal service at its best. How did you even know I would be landing?" Danny gave him an incredulous stare,

"Duh! Kono was tracking you from the minute you left Hawaii 2 days ago. She's terrified that we're going to 'misplace' you again after just getting you back . . . you may want to consider getting a restraining order taken out against her." Steve just smiled as he deftly plucked the car keys out of his partner's hand and nudged him aside as he jumped in the driver's seat,

"Nah, it's nice to be wanted. I'll just have to remember to take special precautions if I really don't want anyone knowing where I am." He glanced over as Danny walked around to the passenger side of his own car with a put-upon sigh. Steve spoke up, "Actually, about that, what are your feelings about a completely clandestine mission where no one can know where we are or what we are doing?" Danny peered at him through suspicious eyes,

"Am I gonna like it?" Steve smirked back at the reluctant man,

"Probably not, but you'll come with me anyway. You know, just to keep me out of trouble." Danny just huffed, knowing full well that Steve was absolutely right. They drove back to the Palace, Steve enjoying being behind the wheel of the Camaro again. His stroked the steering wheel, "Has he been treating you right, baby?" Danny looked mortally offended,

"I'll have you know I'm an excellent driver. Unlike you, I'm police pursuit-trained - coming in the top 10% of my class." Steve grinned to himself, it was just too easy. He briefly toyed with the idea of dissing the mainland and Jersey in particular just to wind up Danny even more, but decided that he would save that grievous insult for another day.

Back at the Palace Steve took in the shocked faces around him, Chin in particular was struggling to process what he had just heard. The SEAL had just finished telling his team everything that he now knew about the botched mission that killed Wo Fat's mother and how his own mother had brought up Wo Fat for years then started a new family with his Dad, faked her own death and had been an active CIA asset for all these years. He confided that she had been in hiding since his dad was killed and that the CIA had no idea where Doris McGarrett, aka Shelburne, was right now, "She's been getting help from someone with resources and connections who is completely outside of the agency. I think it's Joe White."

Chin finally recovered enough to speak, "I just can't believe it, Steve. I saw what this did to John, the sacrifices that he made to keep you safe . . . her actions cost him everything!" Danny glanced at Steve,

"Did your father ever find out what had really happened, or did he go to his grave still thinking it was his investigation that caused her death?" Steve recounted everything that Wo Fat had told him,

"Before he died, Dad had started to suspect what had really happened and found evidence to prove it. With a bit more time, I'm certain he would have found out that Doris was really Shelburne and then found the link to Wo Fat's family. At least I can take a small amount of comfort from knowing that Dad could let go of the guilt that he had been carrying for all those years . . . for a very long time I wasn't sure if he really loved me, but then he told me that he did in our last phone call."

Kono added her thoughts, "So, where do you go from here? Do you confront Joe and insist he takes you to see your mother? Do you even want to see her again?" Steve really didn't know what he wanted,

"I don't know – I hate what she did, but it's my Mom!" He took a calming breath, "Do you know what I am going to do first though? I'm going to talk this over with Mary. I've been treating her like some kind of problem child ever since we were sent away and she's not. She's one smart cookie and deserves to have just as much say in this decision as I do. There's no danger to her now, I'll see if she can get a few days off work and fly over from the mainland." Chin gave him an encouraging smile,

"I think that's the right decision, Steve. Doris is her Mom too."

Steve spoke again, "There is something else to discuss." Danny huffed,

"Even more? What else could you possibly have to tell us?" Steve rolled his eyes and continued,

"When Wo Fat had me locked up with Agent Hirsch, he gave me the Champ box that he had taken from my house and told me to find something that would identify Shelburne and also the remains of his mother."

Kono frowned, "Surely he knows where she's buried - in his family's plot?" Danny was starting to put two and two together,

"Except the body they buried wasn't his mother, was it? Just like your own mother's _funeral_. The bloody bumbling CIA do a clandestine switcheroo with the body so that no one can ever find out that she was actually killed in a bomb blast. So, where's the body?" Steve then took them through Josh's discovery of the toolbox's mysterious paint job and the hidden code which was cracked by Wo Fat's analysts. He pulled out a scrap of paper with the string of numbers and smoothed it out on top of the surface table,

"I think Lei Kuan Fat's body is buried at the spot indicated by these coordinates," Danny shoulders slumped and he made a resigned sigh,

"Okay, where is it? I don't suppose it's somewhere sophisticated and exclusive where we could have ourselves a little vacation like Bali or the Seychelles?" Steve grinned,

"It's in a seemingly empty field in Cambodia. Middle of nowhere."

"Of course it is."


	49. Sister Act

**Chapter 49**

Steve wrung his hands together plucking up courage to ring his sister - she may be small, but she was certainly deadly. He wasn't going to tell her why he wanted her to come over to Hawaii, but the girl was as sharp as a tack. He finally manned up and picked up the phone, putting on what he thought was a convincingly happy voice. He had to do this right or Mary would be immediately know that something was up, "Mary, hi! It's Steve."

Mary immediately knew that something was up, ""Ooo-kay. What's going on, big brother?"

Steve sighed. Goddamnit, he couldn't get anything past Mary, "Look, I've found out some stuff relating to the evidence in the Champ Box and our family. I don't want to get into it over the phone, can you wrangle a few days off work and get a flight to Honolulu? I can ring your boss if it helps, pretend its official police business?" Mary caught something in his tone that made her drop the attitude,

"Sure, my job's pretty flexible and if it suddenly isn't then I'll just blow them off. I'll call you when I've got my flights booked."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Mary Ann booked a flight out of LA the next day, giving Steve a little time to do some planning for the Cambodian op. He had let Danny give it a code name, sick of the man's grousing about the names that the Navy chose for their operations. The detective had given it serious consideration and come up with 'Operation Razza' after what he claimed was the best pizza joint in all of America, which also just happened to be in New Jersey.

"Seriously, Danno – Operation Razza?" Steve questioned incredulously, "And you say that our code names are ridiculous?" Danny was unmoved,

"No, Steven. You said I could name it, and name it I have. It has a certain ring to it . . . hmmm, Operation Razza." Steve shook his head and carried on with his planning. He needed to ask a favor from Joe to get them there and then onto China, all without using commercial flights that could be easily traced. If they did this right then nobody would be any the wiser. He asked Danny if he fancied a HALO jump when they were over their destination. His partner didn't even dignify that question with a response, but it got him to shut up and so Steve chalked that up as a win.

Steve suddenly noticed the time and shot out of the office to get to the awards ceremony for James Keoki. He took his place amongst the many HPD officers and proud family members of all of the recipients and clapped loudly when it was the young officer's turn to walk across the podium and receive his award. After the ceremony Steve was just getting up to leave when a voice shouted out from the crowd, "Stevie – my boy. Howzit!" He spun round to see Ben Keoki coming across to meet him, enveloping him in an enormous hug. They both whispered their condolences to each other, Ben saying how sorry he was about Steve's Dad and Steve saying the same about Chelsea. They just held each other for a while and then Steve stepped back to take in his 'Uncle' Ben,

"Hell, you just don't age! You look the same from when I was just a little kid. Whatever you're taking, I want some." Ben laughed,

"So, back on the island again then. How's it going with the Task Force?" Steve gave his Dad's friend a smile,

"It's good. In fact it's just good to be home," he didn't have to say anymore, Ben knowing exactly what he meant. Ben spotted another face that would be familiar to Steve,

"Hey, Troy. Look who I've found!" Officer Troy Ookala came over with a big smile on his face,

"I heard you were back, Steve. Welcome home, Son." The men reminisced for a few minutes, Steve's warm welcome from two of the most respected old-school officers on the force not going unnoticed by the other HPD officers and detectives present. Their chatting got around to the time that the two men had been on the exact same stage with John McGarrett and Duke Lukela, all receiving an award for their part in foiling a vicious bank robbery. Troy explained further, "Hell of a nasty business that, Steve. You father fired at one of the bank robbers and because he had his hands on a detonator at the time, it blew them both clean off when the explosive was activated." Ben shuddered,

"I'm not ashamed to say that I lost my breakfast, right there in the bank. Your Dad was a trooper, he had half the robbers in restraints and was stemming the blood of the injured man before I even had chance to react. It was chilling in the courtroom though, something about the man made my blood run cold. What was his name, Troy?"

"Er . . . Stoner. Curt Stoner." Ben continued with the grim tale,

"Yeah - this Stoner fella looked at us from the dock, with his stumps all bandaged up, with absolute evil in his eyes. I've seen my fair share of criminals, but that has stayed with me all this time. I hope he never gets released." Duke had made his way over and caught the last bit of the conversation. He spoke up,

"I've been involved in hundreds of cases over the years, but that one was something else. They were a vicious crew, an officer was shot a few weeks before when the same crew hit another bank. That Stoner fella got what he deserved. I'm with Ben on this, that man was pure evil."

Steve resolved to look into the case and find out where Curt Stoner was imprisoned and if he was up for parole in the new few years. Ben had been on the force for over 40 years and if this one man stood out from the hundreds of criminals that the police officer had put away, then it warranted extra investigation. If Stoner did get released then Steve wanted to know about it so he could arrange covert surveillance, at least until he could be sure that the mutilated bank robber wasn't going to be coming back to Oahu to make trouble for the long-serving police officers.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Steve was parked illegally in his truck outside the airport arrivals hall as he waited for his sister and had been required to flash his Five-0 badge at the same airport parking attendant. The embittered man was starting to hate the Task Force and turned on his heel to find another unsuspecting motorist on which to take out his frustration. Mary Ann appeared from the arrivals hall and couldn't miss the massive blue Silverado.

Steve got out to meet her and the two siblings hugged. Much to his relief, she didn't immediately ask him any questions - instead, they just chatted about their lives on the drive back to the house. Steve told Mary that he and Catherine were no longer in a relationship. Mary Ann was sad for her brother, he seemed happy when his 'not-girlfriend' was around - she sincerely hoped that he found someone who would make him just as happy. She told Steve about her latest 'loser' boyfriend whom she had just kicked into touch. He offered to come and sort him out if he caused any trouble and Mary felt a warm feeling from his natural protectiveness. She wondered if it was just LA where the men that she met seemed to be such losers, it could be a really strange place at times. In fact, the only thing holding her there was her beloved Aunt Deb but since Mary had grown up and left home her aunt was travelling more and even singing in the more laid-back clubs where they still appreciated the old classics. Mary knew that her unexpected arrival all those years ago had disrupted a highly promising musical career for the talented lady and she felt very guilty about what her aunt had sacrificed.

She was pulled from her thoughts as the truck pulled into the very familiar family home. Steve helped her with her bags and when she was all settled they sat out in the Adirondack chairs and watched the ocean. Steve cleared his throat and started to tell Mary about everything that had happened in the last few weeks. She had been very relieved to hear that Wo Fat and Hiro Noshimuri were no longer going to pose any threat to anyone and that this mysterious vendetta against their family was over.

Mary saw how upset Steve was about Agent Greer's death and hoped that he wasn't somehow managing to blame himself. Her brother had stopped, as if he was unsure about how to continue and she felt fear rise up inside her – just what was so bad that he had to tell her in person? She asked him, her voice wavering a little, "Steve, what do you have to tell me?" He didn't meet her eyes and steeled himself for what he needed to tell his sister,

"Mary, do you remember what I told you about a CIA agent called Shelburne?" She nodded,

"Yeah, they killed Wo Fat's mother instead of his father and set all this in motion." Steve replied,

"There's more to it than that. Shelburne was a young agent just out of her training called Sarah Pattison. She botched the assignment, but it turned out to be an unsanctioned hit and she felt so guilty about leaving the baby without a mother that she stayed undercover and raised the kid as her own for years. Then the CIA found out and made her leave. She left the agency, went back to her real name and came to Hawaii and got married and had two kids . . . Mary, that agent was our mother." Mary was shocked,

"Mom killed people for a living before she married Dad? Oh my God! Is that why she was really murdered?" Steve shook his head and gave himself a little pep talk, he had to finish this,

"Mom wasn't murdered. She faked her own death and has been an active agent with the CIA ever since. Mary – our Mom is still alive. Dad had found out and was investigating her disappearance when he inadvertently told Wo Fat about Shelburne, not understanding the connection between our families."


	50. Grave robbers

**Chapter 50**

Mary couldn't believe what she was hearing, her breathing hitched as she tried to process what her brother was telling her, "But why, Steve? How could she do that to us all?" Steve didn't have an answer and could only hold his sister as she cried. They sat out there for hours as the sun went down and night set in. Mary had got over her shock and was now in the 'anger' stage of her grief, asking all the same questions that Steve had asked when he first found out. Steve had explained how their mother was in the wind, but that he thought Joe knew where she was.

Mary was angry all over again, "She leaves us high and dry nearly 20 years ago and then at the first sign of trouble, she doesn't do anything to help keep her own kids safe and instead makes sure that she's alright . . . But oh no, she's not done with messing with our family, she has to go and drag Uncle Joe into her sick little game. Did she even give him a choice?" Steve hadn't thought about it like that, he had just lumped Joe in with his mother's scheming. He looked at Mary for her permission,

"Shall I ring Joe now, see if he can come over and talk to us?" The young woman nodded her head in agreement,

"Yeah, I think you should. It's only right to give him the chance to explain himself after all he's done for us." Steve made the call and the siblings went to have some food, suddenly realizing how hungry they both were. Joe arrived as they were washing up the dishes, standing side by side in the old-fashioned kitchen. It crossed Mary's mind that the whole house really needed a complete revamp, it was like a relic from the past and was stopping them from properly moving forward. They moved to the living room, settling down into the large comfy sofa and armchair. Steve spoke first and he got straight to the point, sick of all the secrecy and half-truths,

"I have found out the whole story about Mom being Shelburne and her faked death. I told Mary everything, Joe. She knows that Mom is an active CIA Agent called Shelburne who accidently killed Wo Fat's mother in an unsanctioned CIA op and that she is still very much alive. I know that Shelburne has gone to ground and I'm pretty sure that she roped you into helping her stay hidden." Joe looked at the two siblings who had meant so much to him over the years, having never had children of his own. He sighed,

"You're right. Your mother came to me after she found out about John's death. She was terrified of what Wo Fat would do to her if he found out that she was the one who killed his mother. She couldn't trust anyone in the CIA and so I agreed to help her disappear. I thought I was helping you two by keeping her and all of this mess hidden. Now, I'm not so sure." He paused as a thought came to him, "Have you invited me here to ask me to take you to her?"

Steve turned to Mary, "I dunno. Are we?" Mary was deep in thought and thinned her lips as she made a face while processing everything,

"I think I'd prefer to believe that my mother died in that car wreck all those years ago. Whoever could fake her own death and leave Dad devastated and let her own children be sent away from everything they had ever known was not _my_ mother . . . they were the actions of a selfish CIA Agent who put herself above the very people she was meant to protect. She could've somehow let Dad know that it wasn't his investigation that got his own wife killed. He would've been freed from all that guilt and maybe we'd have had at least one parent in our lives. She effectively made us orphans." Steve moved closer and pulled his sister into a hug,

"What she just said. Mom died in 1992 and I want to remember her as she was then, a loving mother who was on the school PTA and made me a packed lunch for school every day. Shelburne the CIA Agent is not my mother. You need to break free of her Joe, she's gonna drag you down too. You don't owe that woman anything, you have more than fulfilled your promise to Dad to look after us."

Joe nodded, completely understanding their position. He would travel to Japan to visit Doris in person and let her know that Wo Fat was dead and she could come out of hiding. He would also tell her Steve and Mary's decision and ask her never to contact them again. The poor kids had been through enough.

When Mary had gone to bed, Steve took Joe to one side and told him about the plan to find Wo Fat's mother and have her remains buried in the family plot. Joe listened carefully and together the men planned the military transport and how to go about the mission without alerting the Navy or any of the agencies. Steve had a final message for Shelburne,

"Can you tell Doris that when she comes out of hiding that she should be the one to make the arrangements for the re-burial ceremony – after all, it was her cock-up that caused all this pain in the first place . . . besides she was there for the first funeral and so knows which grave needs to be used. I have no plans to be there once the body has been safely delivered back to the cemetery," Steve frowned as he thought of something, "what happened to the father, Yao Fat? I don't want him coming to exact his revenge in years to come."

Joe shrugged, "When the Company pulled Shelburne off the assignment, they took Yao Fat into custody. He's never been heard from since, my guess is that he's at a Black Site somewhere or long dead." Steve pondered on this,

"Yeah, makes sense. As long as I know he'll never bother me or Mary then I don't care."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

With Joe's help, the trip to Cambodia went very smoothly. Danny accompanied Steve, as the Navy SEAL knew he would, and he realized that he couldn't have asked for a better partner when he had stormed into the detective's life and pretty much forced him to join the Task Force. They located the field using GPS and dug at the exact location marked by the coordinates. They couldn't risk drawing unwanted attention by using heavy digging equipment and so had to dig by hand in the humid conditions. Suffice it to say that Danny was not a happy camper. It took a good portion of the day, but they finally heard the tell-tale scraping sound as their shovels hit wood. Another half an hour of digging later and they had cleared all of the soil off the wooden box. Steve forced the lid off with his utility knife and as expected, a skeleton was in the box. Steve would've liked to have made use of DNA confirmation, but there was no way to do that without raising some serious red flags and so he had settled on taking basic measurements. Max had shown him how to tell a male skeleton from a female one and a very cursory examination confirmed that the coffin contained the remains of a fully-developed woman who was the same approximate height as Lei Kuan Fat.

That was good enough for Steve and he carefully sealed the remains into a special lightweight body bag that the two men had brought with them. Despite Danny's grumbling, they made much quicker work of replacing the lid of the box and shovelling the soil back over it. They raked over the site and scattered some vegetation around to break up the new expanse of bare soil. Steve remarked that in this climate, the weeds would grow back within weeks and then no one would be any the wiser that the ground had been disturbed. The sweaty pair trudged back to their vehicle with the body bag and set off on the next leg of their long journey.

The flight to Beijing was uneventful and the partners got into their rented car and drove the short distance to the cemetery. Steve's proficiency in Mandarin came in handy, it being the main language spoken in Beijing. Joe had already made arrangements with the cemetery's caretaker and Steve quickly confirmed why they were there and had the body passed over for safekeeping in no time. The caretaker assured Steve that all the arrangements had been finalised and a special blessing would be performed when the remains were re-buried in their rightful plot. Steve thanked the man and then he and Danny made their way back to their rental car. Danny caught a glimpse of a woman as she ducked behind a headstone. She stood out because she was Caucasian and tall, both attributes an unusual sight in an isolated Chinese cemetery. He steered Steve back to the car and when the other man was safely inside he patted his pockets as if he was looking for something, "Ah damn. I left my cell in that man's office. Sorry, I won't be a minute." Steve just nodded,

"No problem, Buddy. I promise I won't leave without my wing man." Danny grinned at him and jogged back to the building but quickly diverted, skirting around the edge of the graveyard and then circling back. He surprised the woman who had been hiding behind a particularly ornate headstone,

"Doris McGarrett, I presume?" She recovered quickly, having years of covert training and spycraft under her belt,

"Yes. And you are?" Danny looked her up and down before answering, she was in good shape for her age, clearly keeping up with the gruelling requirements for active fieldwork,

"That really doesn't matter. The only thing that matters is that you leave that man," he vaguely waved his arm in the direction of the car, ". . . alone. He made his decision together with Mary Ann in light of all of the facts and neither of them want to see you . . . ever." Her eyes flashed dangerously as she took a quick step forward and leaned over the detective,

"You have no right to keep me from my son. I just need a chance to explain." Danny had been threatened by people far more imposing than the woman in front of him and was unfazed by her aggression,

"The facts speak for themselves. All the explanation in the world won't change the sequence of events that _you_ put into action all those years ago. They lost their mother in 1992 and that's the way they want to keep it. You're a CIA asset who goes by the handle 'Shelburne' and of no further interest to them. I suggest you give that poor woman in the body bag a proper burial and then report into the agency – I hear they're missing an agent." Danny didn't give her time to formulate a response, he just turned and jogged back to the car. Jumping in the passenger side he waved at Steve to leave, "Sorry, the caretaker was under the mistaken impression that I speak Mandarin. Took me a while to retrieve my phone and get out of there." Steve chuckled,

"Let's go home, Danno. We need to stop Mary Ann from completely renovating the whole house – I could see it in her eyes, she's got it into her head that it will help erase the past if we modernize the place."

Danny laughed as the car set off back to the city, "Hey, don't knock it – I think she's got a point. It is kind of creepy that nothing has changed since you were a kid. I say it's way past time for something new." Steve conceded the point,

"Yeah, Buddy. Maybe it _is_ time for a fresh start."


	51. Mysterious money

**Chapter 51**

The farmer watched the bits of paper flutter over his field, confused by the sight. He ran over and grabbed a piece before the wind took it away again and was surprised to see that it was a charred corner of a U.S. dollar. He phoned the police and told the dispatcher about the burnt money littering his land. It took HPD officers hours to collect up whatever bits of money that they could find, filling a couple of bags by the time they had finished. The bags were booked into the evidence locker for further examination at a later date.

It was 2 days later when the Chief of Police looked up as one of his officers entered his office to provide an update on the mysterious charred money. He listened carefully to the young woman and then sent her on her way. He immediately called the Governor to report what had been found. The two men were sat in their usual restaurant later that day, digesting the information as well as a rather nice lunch. Denning spoke first, "So, you have sufficient evidence to identify this money as being from the HPD asset forfeiture locker, collected as part of a joint Coast Guard and HPD drug bust. Let me get this right, all of this money was stolen from the locker during the fake tsunami warning but was immediately recovered from a large number of sand bags on the steps of HPD HQ. It was fully accounted for at the time?" The Chief nodded,

"Yep, that about sizes up the situation. We seized $28 million 8 years ago and it is periodically checked. We even did a full recount yesterday, in case some had been taken since Five-0 recovered the money a couple of months back. It's all there, but a cursory examination of random serial numbers indicates that as much as $10 million could have serial numbers that don't match the original numbers." Sam frowned, he didn't like mysteries,

"So what do we think happened then?" The other man lowered his voice, so they couldn't be overheard,

"A short time before the money was stolen and then recovered again, Chin Ho Kelly was held hostage by the man who murdered John McGarrett. He wanted $10 million. The Five-0 Task Force captured Victor Hesse and disabled the bomb around Kelly's neck. I'm thinking that they 'borrowed' the ransom money from the locker, planning to return it when they had saved their teammate but then things went south. The money was found a couple of miles downwind from the location that Hesse was apprehended – maybe he burnt the ransom out of spite?"

Denning added his take on the scenario, "But then Five-0 actively do their best to stop Commander Hale from stealing the whole lot a few weeks later. They must have known that it would be recounted before being returned to the locker and they would be exposed? Why didn't they just let him take it – they would have been home free?" The Chief shrugged,

"I have to say, I don't always like their methods but they sure get results. I suspect that they couldn't let Hale get away with it, even if it meant revealing what they had done. My guess is that Governor Jameson covered the shortfall herself, to protect her Task Force." Denning methodically stroked his fingers across his chin as he contemplated all of the facts,

"You do realize that this is a moot point anyway. At the time, Five-0 had _full_ immunity and means – they can't be prosecuted or disciplined, even if we wanted to. Plus this is all speculation, we don't have any proof and even if we did, there's no disputing the fact that the money's all there now."

The Chief agreed, "They just handed us the entire Yakuza empire on a platter. I'm not about to start trying to dismantle Five-0. I had my reservations, as you well know . . ." Sam just smirked at that, "But, I'm a fair man and have to give credit where it's due. Plus I understand from Lieutenant Kelly that Commander McGarrett has realized that greater cooperation with HPD would actually bring us all benefits. I think we can contain this situation and draw a line under the whole affair. All the money is accounted for and that's all that matters . . . Governor, I believe that it's too risky to keep this haul in its current location. I would like to arrange for it to be moved to a far more secure holding facility, otherwise it's only a matter of time before someone else has a go at it and my officers could be injured or killed in the process."

Denning was in full agreement, "You make a very good point, Chief. Make the necessary arrangements to transfer the seized assets elsewhere. In fact, I'm going to raise this at our next budget meeting as it's been 8 years since the money was originally recovered from the smugglers. We must surely be in a position to formally re-appropriate this money as per the Federal guidelines for seized assets from criminal activities. $28 million will go a long way towards my urban regeneration and youth rehabilitation programs," he creased up his brows in thought, "and please put a stop to any plans that IA might be hatching – I know they have a grudge against certain members of the Task Force. I'll have a little _chat_ with the Commander and make sure that he follows through on his plans to better integrate Five-0 with HPD. You know, the man had already recognized that on occasion they crossed the line just a little too easily, he is actively looking for ways to stop that happening again." The Chief of Police was very pleased to hear that as, in his experience, recognizing that there even was a problem in the first place was already more than halfway to winning the battle.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Danny had been dwelling on the situation with his brother for the past week or so. Something was tugging at his brain cells, not letting it rest. He was an exceptional detective and had solved many a case by this ability to keep pulling at something until it started to make sense. Some of his partners had found that trait to be extremely annoying but the more perceptive ones recognized it for what it was, the workings of a sharp analytical mind. Meka and then Steve had both got it very quickly, giving the other man room to think and relying on his insight.

Danny slowly turned a postcard over and over in his hands, it had arrived in the post a few weeks after his brother Matt had fled the island before the FBI agents could catch up with him. The card was nothing special, a fairly standard glossy photo of some palm trees with a vista of an island out to sea. Matt had scrawled just a few words on the back of the postcard and Danny pondered on them for the umpteenth time, _"Wish you were here."_

Danny had originally just looked at the postcard that his brother had sent him with nothing but anger for all the hurt that the foolish man had caused him and their parents, crumpling it up in his fist and slinging it in a cabinet full of paperwork. But this business with Wo Fat and Steve's family had got him to thinking about his own family and about a week ago he took it back out of the cabinet and smoothed out the creases in the thin card. His brother had no reason to send it to him and yet he still did. There had to be more to it than he was getting from just the words on the card. He abruptly pushed his chair away from his desk and stalked into Steve's office. He flicked the postcard at his partner and flopped down onto the leather sofa with a dramatic sigh. Steve picked up the postcard with a questioning look at Danny and examined it carefully, "Who's it from?"

Danny growled out his reply, "My bloody marvellous brother, who decided it would be a good idea to steal from his clients and then get into bed with a drug lord, no less!" Steve made an 'Aaah' face and read the words again,

"Bit cryptic, don't you think?"

Danny nodded vigorously, lancing one hand through the air to emphasize his point, "Yes, Steven. I _do_ think! He's trying to send me a message that wouldn't be obvious at first glance. Is this where he's holed up and he wants me to join him?" Steve's forehead creased up as he ruminated upon the picture,

"No, I don't think so. I'm pretty sure that I recognize this view, it's in a remote part of the island. My Dad took me up there sometimes to kayak and fish. Why would Matt want you to go there?" Danny perked up,

"I never thought of it like that, maybe he's telling me that he wishes that I was there, like in that exact spot. But why?" Steve pushed himself out of his chair and picked up the postcard,

"We've still got a couple of days before Five-0 is back on full duty, let's go check it out."


	52. Below the surface

**Chapter 52**

The two men stood with the postcode held up in front of them, comparing it with their current view, "This is definitely the exact spot," remarked the detective, "so what does he want me to do now that I'm here," Danny slowly turned around taking in the view from all angles, "on the surface, there's nothing of any importance that I can tell." Steve started at that comment, it was almost exactly the same thought process that he went through with Wo Fat when they were contemplating the mysterious coordinates,

"Well maybe it's something below the surface, then?" Steve walked under the trees, examining the ground carefully. He could see patches of grass that were a little uneven and hadn't quite knitted back in with the grass around them, "These clumps of grass have been dug up and then replaced, why would you want to do that?" Danny quickly picked up on his train of thought,

"It's something you'd do if you wanted to bury something but not make it obvious. In a few more months, these patches would have merged into the rest of the grass and no one would be any the wiser."

Steve slapped his partner on the back, "Well, it looks like it's my turn to help _you_ dig for something. I'll just grab the shovel from the back of the truck." Danny shook his head in wonder and shouted after the ultra-prepared man,

"You have a shovel in your truck, just in case? What, you might need to bury a body at any given moment? Are you a closet psychopath? Should I be worried?" Steve returned with the handy-looking garden tool in his hand, smiling at Danny's mini-rant,

"You can never be too prepared, Danno," his features rearranged into what Danny immediately decided to dub the 'super-smug-I-know-what-I'm-talking-about' face. The detective fleetingly wondered how many distinct 'faces' he was up to now, as he might need to start cataloguing them in a notebook to keep track at this rate. He was pulled from his musing as his partner continued with a mini-rant of his own, "We live in a place that gets battered by hurricanes and storms with little warning. I've got an extensive first-aid kit as well as emergency supplies and ropes in my truck, even a saw if I need to cut through a tree that has come down and is blocking the road. Now, if you find yourself caught out in a storm you'll be up shit creek without a paddle."

Danny snarked back, "That's where you're wrong, my friend. For a start, the only place I'd be in the face of an incoming storm is safely indoors. And I most certainly wouldn't be venturing up any creeks, either with or without a paddle." The SEAL grinned and gestured for him to give him some room to dig,

"Right, stand back – I'll have this dug up in no time."

Steve started with the grass patch that was nearest to them, carefully removing the top layer of grass first and placing it to one side. He started to dig and had only removed about 10 shovelfuls of dirt when he felt the metal blade hit something soft. A little more digging revealed a dark-colored holdall. Steve snagged the handles of the dirty gym bag and pulled hard to release it from its burial place. Danny had come and crouched next to his partner and they both just looked at the bag for a minute. Finally, the detective reached for the zip and slowly opened up the bag, shaking off the remaining dirt as he unzipped it. The bag was stuffed full of money, a lot of money. Steve let out a low whistle, "Shit, Danny. What the hell was your brother into?" Danny had no answer to that and just sat back on his haunches and looked at the bag. He turned to Steve,

"We'd better keep digging, there are quite a few disturbed patches of grass under these trees." By the time they had finished, the multiple piles of soil looked like a family of moles had run amok. Steve directed Danny to start moving all of the bags to his truck while he filled in the holes and carefully replaced the divots of grass - no one would be able to tell that they had even been there. Steve started the engine and they set off on the long drive back to Honolulu. He didn't need to check their destination with his partner, driving straight to his house with the bags of money. They brought them all into the living room and between them began the laborious task of arranging the money into piles and counting it. It was in the early hours of the morning when they finished and had a tally that they both agreed upon.

"I make it $13 million exactly," declared Steve. Danny had the same figure,

"Yep, me too. That's a lot of cash. I wonder who it belongs to 'cos it certainly doesn't belong to my brother." Steve sagged back into the sofa, they couldn't just ignore this,

"We need to find him, Danny. Someone's gonna want this back at some point and they're not the sort of people you mess with . . ." he trailed off but his partner knew what he wasn't saying,

"I hate him so much right now, but he's still my brother. Can you help me find him, get him safely into FBI custody? I'd rather he was in prison than 6 feet under." Danny got a bit choked up at that thought, "We can contact those FBI agents who were tracking us when Mattie came to visit, tell them what we know." Steve reflected on this for a minute before replying,

"Yeah, that's one option. But if Matt is tangled up with Colombian drug lords like we think he is, the FBI is not the right agency to handle the situation. I know you hate it every time we get a case involving the CIA but they have the resources to help us find your brother. Plus, Director Thompson promised to link me up with the field office here on Oahu – let's take her up on her very generous offer." Danny sighed in resignation,

"Yeah, it makes sense. Doesn't mean I have to like it." Steve just gave him a sympathetic half-smile and then the two friends called it a night, having first secured the money in Steve's large locking gun cabinet.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The CIA Director was true to her word and Steve found himself meeting a man from the 'State Department' and a lady out of DC who purported to be from 'Cultural Affairs'. They had chosen a creepy parking garage with no CCTV for the meet and Steve almost smirked at the cliché, the whole thing couldn't have screamed 'spook' more if they tried. But he needed to play nicely as they had something that he wanted, a potential lead on Mattie Williams' location. They had clearly been instructed to provide full disclosure, as what they told him next was highly classified. Agent Anna Douglas spoke first, "I was lined up to be Wo Fat's handler from inside the CIA. Turns out that the agency brokered a number of arms deals with the man many years ago," at Steve's horrified expression she quickly clarified her position, "you have to understand, Commander, international policy is akin to trying to navigate through shifting sands – our friends become enemies overnight when faced with regime changes in countries of strategic importance to the U.S. He was useful in arming certain factions, but then quickly became a liability and we severed all ties. Before your team took him down, there was concern that he might expose our past dealings and cause embarrassment to the agency. That's where I was to come in, should he ever be captured alive." The older man, who had introduced himself as Agent Kendricks, chipped in with his intel at that point,

"One of the deals was in Columbia, where we needed to shore up the position of a drug lord there by the name of Marco Reyes. He's now head of the third most powerful drug cartel in Columbia." Steve jumped in at that point with a very Danny-like snarky comment,

"You have a ranking system, like a points-based league of bad guys?" The agent stared him down for a moment and continued,

"This is highly classified, Commander – you cannot share what I am about to tell you with your team." Steve nodded his understanding, after all he couldn't share much about his Navy ops with his team either and told the CIA agents exactly that. The other man carried on, "Operation Sandpiper was implemented in a rush, without sufficient foresight, to prevent a potentially devastating stock market crash. It turns out that Wall Street investors poured money into the expanding housing market in Columbia, but one of the too-good-to-be-true investments was actually a legitimate-looking cover for a cartel money-laundering scheme. Everything was fine until the authorities stepped up their enforcement efforts and suddenly all these U.S. financial institutions are taking a big hit. The CIA helped Marco Reyes seize power from a far less reasonable cartel member and now he keeps a steady stream of cocaine and money flowing and the banks are making a profit from their investments again." Steve took a minute to digest the intel. Christ – this is exactly why he never wanted anything to do with the Company. Bad decisions from the past were always coming back to haunt you. He sighed and asked the two agents a question,

"Do you know where Matthew Williams fits into all this? He left something behind when he fled the island. Quite a lot of something, actually." Anna let her boss answer.

Kendricks cleared his throat and continued, "Yeah. Williams has been quite useful to Reyes on the money laundering side of his business, the man's got quite the flair for the financials. We've been working on him getting close enough to Reyes to get a look at his books – in particular the account that details all the pay-offs that the man has to make to keep his business running smoothly. We don't care about the ones to the Columbian generals, the politicians and government officials . . . what we want is the name of an American that is on the take, a CIA Agent that has gotten a tad too cosy with the cartel. This order comes from the Director herself, she wants to weed out the dirty agents – they're a risk to national security and the agents around them." Anna chipped in,

"Just look what happened with that dirty rat, Jonathan Kray. Greer was a friend of mine. We're all at risk while people like that are on the take."

"I know it is murky at times, Commander but we're the good guys here. Sometimes we just have to make the best of a bad situation . . . wait, back up a bit - are you implying that Williams took money from the cartel?" Steve nodded sadly,

"We've recovered $13 million, but he could have taken more. After all, he did flee the country on a private plane – that costs money to arrange." Kendricks looked at Douglas and cursed,

"Shit, this changes things. If Reyes finds out, then Williams is as good as dead. The man's one vengeful SOB, no one who crosses him lives to tell the tale. Williams needs to be pulled out, I don't want his death on my conscience."

Steve deliberated on this, "But he's gonna go after him, or his family, if he's as bad as you say. Let me work on a plan to get the name of your dirty agent and extract Matt from this mess without alerting Marco Reyes – then everyone goes home happy," he took in the doubtful expressions on the faces in front of him, "just give me 24 hours to come back to you with a plan. I'll need some backup on this, I'll have to loop in my team but I won't disclose anything about the CIA and Operation Sandpiper. They'll only need to know the details of the extraction plan." Kendricks gave a decisive nod of his head,

"24 hours, Commander. We'll maintain radio silence on this, so as not to alert the mole in the agency."


	53. Under the radar

**Chapter 53**

Joe didn't want to abandon Steve and Mary when he sensed that they could really use his support and so delayed reporting back for duty to Naval Base Coronado, citing personal family reasons. His superiors had agreed, after all the man hardly ever requested time off. That left him with some free time and he had readily agreed to Steve's request to meet with the team at the Palace. Steve had just finished telling everyone what he could about the cartel and Matt Williams' role in it all. Danny had been beside himself, this was even worse that he had imagined. One bad decision by his brother had led to an even worse decision and on it went until the whole situation had completely spiralled out of control. Steve added, "That's why I've asked Joe to join us – his operational experience can help us plan a way out for Matt and give the CIA the name of their mole."

The team bounced ideas around until after a couple of hours they had a rudimentary outline plan. They would fly into neighbouring Venezuela and then cross over the border into Columbia using an old smuggling route. Once in the country, Steve had a contact from a previous Navy SEAL mission who would fly them closer to Marco Reyes' base of operations, the distances being too far to travel by road. Steve had been given intel on Matt's movements and every Thursday he went to make pay-offs in person to an official at the local town hall. This gave them the perfect opportunity to have someone in place, posing as a cleaner or maintenance worker, so that they could talk to the man in private – they needed to know how close he was to identifying the CIA mole and brief him on their plan. They would assist Matt in getting the intel on the mole and then create a fake 'sting', planting the $13 million in the mole's house and giving Reyes reason to believe that it was the mole who stole the money from him. A CIA grab team would be on hand to stop the drug lord from killing the mole, threatening him with ending their arrangement if he did. During the extraction of the mole, Matt would be 'killed' and they would take his 'body' at the same time. The idea was that Reyes would chalk it up to the cost of doing business, take his money back and carry on with his profitable drugs empire, all under the protection of the agency.

Steve went back to Agent Kendricks with the plan and they thrashed out the details until both parties were satisfied that it was as good as it was going to get, given the short timeframe. The only thing that was uncertain was Matt's fate. He couldn't just return to his old life, he was still wanted by the FBI and if Marco found out that he had been tricked, then his revenge would be brutal – being in prison wouldn't be enough to keep the fraudster safe. The only option seemed to be for Matthew Williams to cease to exist and enter WITSEC, but as this was a Federal witness protection program then Five-0 would have no jurisdiction and so Danny's brother would effectively disappear forever with no way to ever contact him again. It was a bitter pill to swallow for Danny, because it was not just himself to consider. Matt was also a brother to Bridget and Stella, a son to Eddie and Clara and a beloved uncle to Gracie and Stella's boy, Eric. Steve saw his friend's distress and resolved to explore all possible solutions that would keep Reyes in the dark and Matt safe, but maybe allow for some contact with his family.

That was a job for another day though, as now they had a major operation to plan. Steve had to barter with the Governor to allow Five-0 the freedom to conduct the mission and they arrived at a compromise; Steve would go to Columbia with Joe, with back-up in the form of the CIA special ops team, and the rest of Five-0 would remain in Hawaii to provide remote technical support if needed and also pick up any cases that came their way. Steve was happy with the arrangements as he didn't want Danny anywhere near this, he was way too emotionally-involved and might do something stupid if he thought his brother was in danger.

Steve and Joe made the journey to Venezuela with no problems, using military transport to avoid leaving a travel footprint. Steve hadn't spoken to Joe much on the flight, as his former CO was delighted to find that a man he went through BUD/S with was also in the belly of the massive cargo plane and the two older men spent the flight reminiscing about their former glory days.

After landing, they crossed the border using a disused smuggling route that required intense concentration to avoid rolling the jeep as they gingerly picked their way around the boulders and vegetation on the overgrown trail. The last section was used by more vehicles and so allowed them to pick up the pace and it only took another hour of driving to reach the small grassy runway. Steve greeted his contact warmly, the other man over the moon to see Steve again. The last time they had met had been during a SEAL mission when Steve's Team had rescued the man's family during a textbook extraction of a high-value target – his wife and two children had been held in the compound to keep him in line and getting his family back meant that they could all move to a different part of the country and live in safety. He was a pilot and had a small crop dusting plane that was well-suited to the short runways in the region. What would have been a torturous and risky journey by road was completed in under an hour in the small plane and the two men quickly transferred the bags of money and their kit into the jeep that was waiting for them and were at their safe house before dark.

Steve had made them a hot meal and they sat together in the small living area to eat the food. "Hey, Joe," Steve said as he looked across to his mentor, "thanks for this, you didn't have to come." Joe gave a little tweak of his mouth,

"No, I didn't. But I wanted to – I'd like to see this matter resolved before there's unnecessary bloodshed and then you'd have a very angry Danny Williams to corral. I have observed that he can be a very angry man."

Steve laughed out loud, "That he can. But he's one hell of a partner." He thought about what to say next to the other man, "Um, did you speak to Shelburne? Did she see to the re-burial arrangements for Lei Kuan Fat?" Joe pursed his lips and frowned,

"Yes, I did. It didn't go very well. I am coming to the conclusion that Doris McGarrett is a very selfish woman. However, she is genuinely remorseful about the death of Mrs. Fat and agreed to see to the necessary arrangements. She remembered which plot the unknown corpse was buried in and worked something out with the caretaker of the cemetery. Wo Fat had already paid the man to exhume the body for DNA testing, but the caretaker put the remains back in the same grave as he didn't know what else to do with them. I believe, for the right amount of money, he was more than happy to move the remains of the Jane Doe into another plot and then re-bury Wo Fat's mother in a suitable ceremony in keeping with the family's beliefs . . . I'm glad she didn't use it as an opportunity to try and make contact with you, I did make your views on the matter crystal clear." Steve gave him a conspiratorial smile,

"Oh, but she did. I saw her hiding at the cemetery and then Danny ushered me back to the rental and pretended to go back for his cell phone. I used what Danno would call my super-stealthy ninja skills to get close enough to observe his very blunt conversation with her – I think she got the point. I was close by just in case she tried to hurt him, after all she has no idea what the man means to me."

Joe looked most unhappy at the news, "Damn that woman – I couldn't have been more explicit as to your feelings towards her. I hope she doesn't try and contact you again." Steve just shrugged with a 'what you gonna do' expression on his face,

"If she does then I'll deal with it as and when it happens. Maybe she really has got the point now . . . anyway, enough about our messed-up family affairs and back to this op, how do you propose we get sufficient alone-time with Matt when we corner him at the town hall?" The men slipped into mission-mode, weighing up the pros and cons of each plan of action until they decided to call it a night and go to bed.


	54. Disguises

**Chapter 54**

Steve and Joe worked in perfect unison, a result of their many missions together – each man knowing how the other would respond in any given situation. Matt had nearly keeled over in shock when Steve caught his attention as he was walking past on his way to pay off a government worker. Steve was dressed as a maintenance man and had been crouched down next to an open electricity panel, his face obscured by a cap, and Matt hadn't given him a second glance until the SEAL had addressed him directly. Both men glanced to the far end of the corridor where Joe was doing an excellent job of keeping the official occupied by pretending to be a journalist who had been stopped from reporting on a story in the town. His Spanish was fluent and he was using a fair number of swear words to express his displeasure. Steve nearly didn't recognize Joe himself, he was wearing a very realistic-looking wig made of straggly grey hair and thick glasses and hadn't shaved in 4 days. Steve was also sporting some impressive beard scruff himself, having stopped shaving as soon as he had started planning this op.

The official sighed and ushered the angry journalist into his office to sort the matter out in private, he didn't want to incur the wrath of his bosses by ignoring the problem. Steve immediately put his plan in motion, "Matt, we don't have much time. Just listen to me and answer my questions, okay?" The other man stared at him with wide eyes but managed to nod. Steve continued quickly, "Have you uncovered the identity of the CIA agent that Marco Reyes is paying off?" Mattie shook his head,

"I know where he keeps his ledger with a full list of all the pay-offs he has to make each month, but I haven't been able to get my hands on it without raising too much suspicion – I have no reason to be in Marco's office when he's not there."

Steve replied, "Okay, just give me as many details as you can and then I'll get in there tonight and take a look for myself." Despite his surprise at seeing Danny's partner, Matt was able to rapidly provide Steve with detailed intel as to the location and layout of the office and a description of the book. Luckily Reyes didn't want any business dealings to be conducted at his home, where his family were also living, and so kept a separate office. It had minimal guards at night and privacy concerns ruled out the presence of any security cameras; besides no one would be foolish enough to mess with the cartel, the mere threat of what would happen to transgressors was enough to keep the place safe and sound.

Steve handed the man a folded up note, "We're going to frame the mole and pin the theft of the $13 million you took from Reyes on them and then get you out of this mess. Hide this note for now, read it carefully when you are in private and then destroy it. You need to be ready to act when the time comes."

They were just in time, Matt had walked away from Steve and was at the office door just as Joe came out, less agitated but still looking stormy-faced. The official gave a resigned sigh and watched the unhappy man stomp down the corridor before inviting Matt into his office, "I'm sorry to keep you waiting, my friend. Now that's taken care of let's move onto our far more pleasurable business, shall we?"

Steve and Joe each made their own way back to the safe house, careful not to attract undue attention. There had to be no sign of their presence in Columbia if Marco Reyes was never to find out what had really happened. Steve repeated everything that Matt had told him and Joe was in agreement that this would be a straightforward proposition. It was a one-person job and Joe put himself forward for the task, while Steve liaised with the CIA extraction team. Joe would call Steve with a name the minute he had it.

As expected, everything went without a hitch, the security had indeed been minimal and Joe gained access to the office and found the ledger in a matter of minutes. He took photos of the relevant pages, carefully leaving everything as he had found it and silently exited the office without anyone being any the wiser. He rang Steve as soon as he was clear of the building, nor bothering with any preamble, "CIA Agent Sam Alexander – unsurprisingly, he's listed as being from the State Department." Steve thanked Joe for the intel,

"That's great, Joe. I'll find out where he stays when he's in Columbia doing his business with Reyes. With any luck the man's in town now or in the next few days."

Agent Kendricks was livid when Steve passed on the name of the dirty agent to him. He had worked on many an assignment with Sam Alexander, going so far as to think of him as a friend. He quickly established the man's current whereabouts and relayed this back to Steve. He rang off and rested his head in his hands as he dwelled on the man's treachery, _"Your time's running out, you snake, and not a moment too soon."_

Steve and Joe had moved the bags of money, under the cover of darkness and careful to avoid the security cameras, close to the guest house that was privately situated on the Reyes estate. They settled down in the dense foliage surrounding the guest house, completely hidden from sight. The drug lord liked to keep an eye on his CIA handlers when they were in Columbia, especially this particular one – the deceitful agent was quick enough to sell out his country and so who knew what else he would do for the right amount of money. In keeping with the saying, 'keep you friends close, but your enemies closer', the cartel boss 'generously' housed Sam Alexander in the sumptuous guest house within the grounds of his estate. The man had been stopping there for the past few nights, not in a particular hurry to rush off back to the states – his accommodation here was far more luxurious than his small apartment in DC. He was stretching out his visits to South America as time went on, enjoying being indispensable to the cartel boss. His CIA superiors didn't give him the credit that he thought he was due and he was tired of waiting for his next promotion. He had grown used to the extra money that came with his little side arrangement with Reyes and he was starting to wonder how he could maximise the pay-offs to help give him a very well-funded retirement sooner rather than later.

His cell phone rang, it was Marco wondering if he wanted to join him and his family in the main house. Sam was keen to curry favour with the man and was quick to agree; after a cursory check of his appearance in the mirror he made his way up the artfully-lit path to the house. When they were sure that their target wasn't coming straight back, Steve and Joe slipped silently out of the bushes, dressed in what Danny would call full-on ninja gear and wearing gloves. They covered the short distance to the guest house to find that Sam hadn't locked the door, there was no need. Joe and Steve entered the little cottage and gently closed the door behind them. They scouted the place for a suitable hiding place for the money, not needing to risk turning on the lights as the porch lamp was bathing the inside of the guest house in a gentle glow, giving them sufficient light to see what they were doing. Joe pulled back the thick rug to reveal wooden floor boards, he gestured to Steve to help him loosen one and pull it up. They repeated it with 2 more floor boards, being careful to not make too much noise. The bags of money were then pushed through the gap and spread out on the ground below so that the boards could be replaced. Joe dropped the rug back into place, but made sure it wasn't laying quite flush – they wanted Marco Reyes to be able to find the money after all. Just before they left, they planted a tiny spy camera to give them eyes on the inside of the guest house so the extraction team could be deployed at the right moment.

The next day Steve left a note and some supplies in the pre-arranged drop location for Matthew Williams to retrieve - it confirmed that the mission was a go. When he was safely back in his house, Matt read it carefully several times and then destroyed the note. His hands were shaking and he hoped that he could pull this off. He didn't scoff in the face of danger like his big brother and had been rushing to the bathroom every 5 minutes ever since he got home and was now fairly certain that his bowels had nothing left to give.


	55. Framing a mole

**Chapter 55**

Steve had given Mattie the name of the mole, now all he had to do was cast suspicion on Sam Alexander's role in the missing cash. Danny's brother had got very adept at hiding missing money when it had all started going wrong for him when he lost his client's money in high-risk investments back in Jersey. He had done a good job at concealing the money that he had skimmed off a number of Reye's drug deals, but it could eventually be noticed if someone ever did a full audit of the less well used bank accounts. He decided that for someone of his financial acumen, it would not be unexpected for him to 'notice it' and bring the shortfall to his boss' attention. He checked the dates he had actually taken the money and altered a couple so they all corresponded to dates when Agent Alexander had also been visiting the cartel boss.

Matt then turned his attention to the supplies that Steve had left for him. There was a thin strap-on vest that looked a little bit like a tac vest but had individual pouches filled with fake blood instead of armor-plating. He would be the first to admit that he was terrified of the prospect of being 'shot', the instructions said it would be with blanks but what if they mixed up the bullets, _"Get a grip, Mattie-boy,"_ he told himself, _"they're highly-trained friggin' ninjas – they don't just mix up their ammo."_ Oh well, at least he wouldn't have to fake his fear during the op, there would be no 'acting' required as the man was deeply scared. He had always known it, but declared to himself that his brother was properly badass if he could look down the barrel of a gun without breaking a sweat.

That evening the younger Williams brother made his way to the Reyes' family home. He had called ahead and asked to speak to the man on a matter of some urgency. Steve and Joe had briefed the extraction team and passed over the link for the camera surveillance. They stood down at that point and would not play any further part in the take-down – Reyes would certainly know about Matthew Williams' family and it was not too much of a stretch to suppose that he knew everyone on the Task Force by sight. Besides, the CIA team were one of their best and Steve had full confidence in their abilities. He had worked with guys like this on his joint SEAL-SAD missions and found that they had undergone similar training and approached their assignments with the same mind set as himself.

Mattie nervously followed the drug lord into his study, the man just looked at him and impatiently waited for him to speak. Matt cleared his throat, "Ahem . . . um, I've been trialling a new system for tracking all our financial transactions. It provides real-time inventory and will save us days when have to do a full audit of our accounts." Marco fixed him with an annoyed glare,

"Really, Williams? You wanted an urgent meeting when I'm relaxing at home with my family to tell me that?" The other man was quick to defend himself,

"Oh no, sorry . . . I was trying to explain how I found what I did . . . um, this software has detected accounting anomalies in several of the lesser used accounts . . . I, er, I can't account for just over $13 million−"

Marco's voice was like ice as he interrupted him, "You can't what now?" Matt repeated himself,

"Over $13 million is missing and I don't know where it is . . . but it looks like it occurred over a period of time and only on the dates on this list," he handed over the piece of paper to Reyes. The man's eyes narrowed as he scanned the list. One or two of the dates immediately stood out, they corresponded with some of his biggest shipments and he had always had his CIA handler on standby to deal with any unexpected problems with the authorities. It looked like part of the cash from each of these drug deals had not made it into his bank accounts as expected. Matt continued, "We would have noticed eventually, I'm guessing that the person who took it was planning to be long gone before that point." The cartel boss looked up at him with pure hate flashing in his eyes,

"Oh, I think I know who took it. Fortunately for me, they are currently enjoying my hospitality in my guest house so we don't have far to go. Williams, come with me – you can explain the finances to Agent Alexander and let's see what he has to say."

Sam let the two men into the guest house, surprised to see them. He could sense that something was not right and let Reyes speak first. When he did, his tone was chilling and the agent was starting to get a bad feeling. The fear bubbling up inside of him made him shift nervously and he started to sweat, unknowingly just making Reyes even more suspicious. Marco addressed him directly, "Williams is going to explain something that he has uncovered and while he does that, perhaps you can take a look at these dates and tell me what they all have in common." Alexander scanned the paper and immediately came to the same conclusion as the other man,

"I was here to supervise shipments on all of these dates . . ." he trailed off as he listened to Matt's explanation of the missing money and the penny dropped. He started to bluster, "What? You can't think it was me! I had nothing to do with it!" Marco had been pacing around the room like a prowling tiger and scowled as his foot caught on the wrinkled rug. He impatiently kicked it down and the loose floorboards shifted under his foot. He waved his hand towards the floor and addressed Williams,

"Check it out, why are those boards loose?"

The CIA Extraction Team had been following the conversation via the hidden camera and had stealthily made their way to the front door, ready to breach. Matt pushed back the rug and noticed that three of the boards were not fastened down. The pulled up easily and he put his hand into the space below,

"There's something here, just a minute . . ." he pulled out the bags one by one until he was sure that they were all out. He already knew what was in them, recognising the holdalls as the ones he had swiped from Marco's warehouse and then buried on Oahu. He glanced at his boss for permission and then unzipped the bag nearest to him. The money spilled out and Matt feigned surprise, "Jesus Christ, there's got to be a couple of million in this one bag at least!" He pointed to the currency straps holding each bundle together, "These are the same bands that are used for all the cash payments to us."

Reyes didn't need to hear anything else, he pulled out the gun that he had stuffed into the waistband of his pants and pointed it at Sam. He never got chance to do anything with it, as the grab team took that as their cue to swarm into the room and shouted at him to drop the weapon. He immediately complied and addressed them, "Does the CIA know that you gentleman are invading my home uninvited?" The Team leader made a show of removing the hidden camera from where Steve had placed it and held it up,

"We _are_ the CIA, dickhead. We've been monitoring our light-fingered agent here for weeks, he's been suspected of taking bribes for some time now. As much as I would like to let you just blow his head off, I'm afraid that I no can do. The Director would like a little word with him when we get him comfortably settled in one of our Black Sites. It's very handy we're not on American soil, no need to worry about a little thing like due process." He nodded to his team and gestured towards Alexander, "Right let's take this dirtbag into custody," glancing over at Reyes he continued, "looks like you've got your money back, we've got our prisoner - everyone goes home happy-" He was interrupted by Matt making a grab for the gun on the floor,

"Shit, they're gonna take me too. I can't go to prison!" Marco looked on in horror, he was getting seriously worried - the stupid idiot was going to get himself shot. He tried to talk him down,

"Williams, for God's sake put the gun down! They're not going to take you anywhere." Mattie backed towards the door and then everything happened very quickly,

"I can't let them take me in, Marco!" he raised the gun and before he could pull the trigger, 2 shots in quick succession echoed loudly in the confines of the small cottage. Matt let the gun clatter to the floor and staggered back while clutching his chest, which was bleeding profusely from the two bullets. He collapsed to the ground and the nearest man to him quickly checked for a pulse,

"He's dead, Sir."

The Team leader swore violently and then started barking orders, "Reyes, get back to the house. This never happened. We'll take our prisoner and remove the body and you'll never see us again, okay? You've got your money back, we'll hide it in the same place under the floor until you can get it moved. Now find yourself another accountant because this one's no use to you anymore. You'll be assigned another CIA handler, one that doesn't take bribes." The drug lord nodded, picking up the gun that Mattie had dropped and stopping briefly to look at the dead man, he had become quite fond of the affable financier. With a sad shake of his head, he made his way back to the main house.

The extraction team made quick work of rolling the body into a sheet they took off the bed and two of them carried Williams to their non-descript van, which was parked just outside the gates. Another member of the team took Agent Alexander into custody and bundled him into another waiting car, which took off down the road the second the door was closed. The remaining special operator pulled cleaning supplies out of his backpack and had the evidence of the shooting cleaned in a few minutes. The bags of money were returned to their hiding place and the floorboards and rug replaced to their original positions. Another agent had already retrieved the agent's belongings and the guest house was left as if nothing had ever happened.

Less than 1 hour later, the CIA vehicle pulled up at a small airstrip and deposited the very much alive Matthew Williams onto the plane. Steve and Joe were already seated and waved their thanks to the CIA grab team. The battered crop dusting plane was rumbling down the short runway and in the air before they had even had chance to properly congratulate Mattie on a job well done. The man in question was only one step down from hyperventilating, the whole op had been unbelievably stressful and he didn't know how the other two men did it without having a nervous breakdown on a daily basis.


	56. Lost identity

**Chapter 56**

Danny had been pacing restlessly for hours. Kono glared at him, the man was starting to get on her last nerve,"Steve will ring you when he can. He'll want to be safely on a military cargo plane heading back to Hawaii before he confirms the op went to plan." Danny's phone rang as she finished speaking and he snatched it up. He listened to the person on the other end of the phone and managed to croak out a thank you as his eyes started to water from the relief,

"They've got him. Mattie's safe!" Kono pulled him into a hug and let the man cry into her shoulder, all the pent-up emotion that Danny had been letting build up just coming out. She wondered how he would cope when his brother arrived back on the island and then immediately went into WITSEC and disappeared forever. Matthew Williams was dead, killed in a classified op gone bad in Columbia and that's the way it had to stay.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Matt finally allowed himself to relax when they were out of South American airspace and over open water. He thanked Joe and Steve again, overwhelmed that they would go to all this trouble for him. Steve had pointed out the very real danger to the whole Williams family had the missing money been linked to him. The other man was suitably contrite – he really hadn't considered the consequences of his actions . . . again.

He felt the need to make himself look less like a total shit, "Um, I've been putting nearly all the money aside that the cartel were paying me to make restitution to all the people who lost their savings when my investments went bad. Last month's shipment was a whopper and Reyes gave everyone a bonus, I should have enough to repay all of my former clients." Steve looked over to him,

"But can you get to the money without arising suspicion? Dead men can't withdraw cash from their accounts."

Matt clarified the matter, "I wanted to keep this account well under the radar, it doesn't look good if you're not up to no good when you work for a cartel – if you know what I mean. Repaying debts that I don't have to would make them wonder what I was up to . . . so, I took extra precautions and had an off-shore account set up with no way to link it back to me." Joe chipped in,

"Yeah, we should be able to spin it to avoid any suspicion. I'll make sure the news of your 'death' leaks to the FBI so they stop looking into you. Danny can receive the account details that you sent him just before your death and immediately share them with the FBI and leave them to deal with the restitution to your former clients. That will keep it all above board and Danny can't be charged with withholding evidence."

Mattie nodded in relief and slumped back into the uncomfortable cargo seat, it had been on his mind that all the people who he had defrauded we just normal working class folk and could ill-afford to lose the amount of money that they had. It was for their kid's college funds or to ease them into retirement – he felt lighter than he had in a long time, finally he was doing something right. He suddenly thought about his situation, "Er, Steve?" he asked tentatively, "what's gonna happen to me now?" The SEAL twisted in his seat to look at the other man,

"Well, Matthew Williams can never be seen or heard from again or we face the vengeful wrath of a dangerous criminal coming after you and your family." Joe leaned forward and joined the conversation,

"And to be frank, we've all had quite enough of that happening already." Steve's face twisted into a grimace at the thought of all the damage that Wo Fat had managed to do before he had finally killed him in North Korea. He sighed and carried on talking,

"WITSEC seems to be the logical option, but you would never be able to make contact with anyone from your past again. That includes your family. Danny wouldn't ever be able to find out where you were, even if he wanted to." Matt sobered, this was a life-changing prospect and he teared up a bit at the thought of never seeing his family again. Steve carefully observed him before speaking, noting the man's genuine remorse for all the trouble he had caused, "I might have an alternative that's not quite so drastic."

Matt perked up at his words and gestured for him to continue. Steve explained himself further, "In addition to the 8 major islands that make up Hawaii, we have 124 islets and I have a contact on one of the more remote of these. It's privately owned and only a select group of people have been allowed to settle there. The owner is getting on in years and his declining health has meant that he has deferred much of the day-to-day running of the island to his son and daughter. They are very committed to keeping their father's legacy alive and carrying out vital conservation work - but, it's fair to say that they're not all that great with the financials. In return for having you live on the island under a new name, you would need to take charge of the island's accounts and make sure that they don't bankrupt the whole place within the year . . . Matt, this would be your life from now on - you could never risk leaving, at least not until Marco Reyes and his cartel are out the picture. Who knows, another rival cartel might like a share of his business if the CIA ever tire of their little arrangement - but we can't bank on that happening. However, what it would do is allow you to still see your family. It wouldn't raise any eyebrows for them to come to Oahu to see Danny and then I can fly them all over to the island without anyone knowing. You could see Danny a few times a year and the rest of your family as many times as they are able to come over to Hawaii."

This was an enormous decision for the man, but if he had to take on a whole new life he would rather do it somewhere he could still see his beloved family from time to time. Plus, if he entered WITSEC he might never find out if the Reyes Cartel was ever dismantled. He would still be wanted by the FBI, but at least he would know that his family would be safe from possible retribution. A year ago he would've felt very differently – Matthew Williams was the life and soul of the party, a gregarious man making good money and surrounded by friends.

The same man today had sobered considerably. He had hurt a lot of people and that weighed heavily on his conscience. Then he had lived in fear amongst ruthless cartel members who cared little for human life and Matt had on more than one occasion witnessed someone who had crossed the cartel being killed right in front of him. That happy-go-lucky man he used to be was nowhere to be seen. Maybe a quiet life on a secluded island would be just what he needed to heal his damaged soul and decide on the kind of man that he wanted to become. He was enormously grateful to a man he hardly knew, "I'd like to take the island option, Steve . . . but why are you doing all this for me? You hardly know me?" Steve gave him a little half-smile,

"That's true, but I know Danny and he cares a hell of a lot about his little brother."


	57. Kaʻawale

**Chapter 57**

Kono couldn't help but dwell on how gutted her friend and colleague was going to be when he had to say his final goodbye to his brother. She thought about the situation for the entire journey to Pearl on their way to meet the plane, offering to drive the distracted man and just be there for him. They had parked up and made their way through all the security checks and were waiting near the building adjacent to the main runway. They heard the plane before they saw it, the huge behemoth defying the laws of gravity just by being in the air at all. Kono distractedly wondered how much fuel it took to keep it airborne.

Danny watched the cargo plane touch down and slowly taxi to its unloading point. It was ironic that the last time he had seen his brother had been as he ascended the steps of a plane and now the last time he would ever see him was as he came down the steps of another plane. He looked around but couldn't see any marshals from WITSEC waiting on the tarmac. Maybe Steve was going to take Mattie to them. His partner was one of the first people off the plane with another man that he recognized as his brother once they got a bit closer. Danny set off at a run towards them and pulled Matt into a tight hug, "I'm so glad you're okay," he whispered into his ear, "I was so worried about you." His brother choked back a sob of his own, hugging Danny back as he apologized for all the trouble he had caused,

"I'm so sorry. Thank you for not giving up on me, big brother." Steve gave them a bit of privacy and went over to talk to Kono. He quickly filled her in on his plans for the younger Williams and she let out a sigh of relief,

"Oh thank God, Brah! Danny will be so happy, he wasn't ready to say goodbye for good." She tugged at his arm, "Come on, we have to tell Danny before he implodes."

When Steve went through his plan for the third time he got the biggest reaction of all. Danny just kept thanking him over and over again, rubbing his face with his hands in disbelief. He had been building himself up for this moment for days, knowing what had to happen to keep his brother and his family safe from Marco Reyes, and now he didn't quite know how to take the news that Mattie wasn't going to be completely lost to him after all.

Steve had radioed ahead during the flight and a young ensign had been dispatched to the local store with a suitcase and been tasked to fill it with various items of clothing and footwear in Matt's size. There was certainly enough to keep the man going until Steve could next take Danny to the island for a visit. Steve had disappeared for a few minutes and came back with a big smile on his face, "We have ourselves a helo, courtesy of the Navy. We need to go now so we can drop off Matt and make it back before it's needed for a training exercise."

He didn't even have to ask if the detective was coming with them to the small island, it was the first time ever that the man had eagerly jumped into a helicopter with him without complaining about imminent death and crazy SEALs. The noise of the chopper prevented them for having a proper conversation while they were in flight, but Danny was going to make sure that Steve knew how much he appreciated this. To not have to tell his family that they would never see their beloved Mattie again was a huge weight off his shoulders.

They gently touched down on the designated helicopter pad at the edge of a well-maintained dirt runway. A man and woman were leant against their utility vehicle, waiting for them. Steve made the introductions, he knew the island-dwelling siblings from way back. Their fathers had been good friends and the two younger children had followed Steve around like little ducklings. He had tolerated them, used to having Mary to look after, and taught them how to surf and dive for shells. They had been naturals in the water, staying in the ocean until their skin was wrinkled and only coming out for food and bedtime.

Kawai and Aloani Fenchurch were half-native Hawaiian, their dad had come to the islands as a marine biologist from a wealthy English family and never left. He had fallen in love with a native woman and together they had negotiated a good price for an island that had been uninhabited for years. It was an important ecosystem for many dwindling species of marine life and they had worked tirelessly to create the perfect environment for these important fish species and other marine life. The name of the islet perfectly suited its nature - it was called Kaʻawale, which loosely translated as isolated and free. Kawai and Aloani had come along and, together with a number of like-minded individuals and families, the Fenchurch family had moved onto the island permanently and built up a community dedicated to conservation.

Sadly their mother had died after a long battle with cancer, but they remained on the island as a family and vowed to continue their mother's legacy. Now that their father was ailing it looked like the full burden of managing the island would fall entirely on their shoulders. Matt would be a welcome asset, his knowledge of accounting just what they needed as neither of them was naturally skilled in that area and they would soon burn through their cash without some expert guidance. There wasn't much you could tell them about marine ecosystems but they really could do with some pointers when it came to financial spreadsheets.

When it came to introducing Mattie, Steve paused as he was unsure what name to call him by. Matthew stepped forward and did it for him, "Hi, thanks so much for inviting me to live with you on your beautiful island. I'm David Turner, but everyone calls me Dave, or if you're my brother here, Davey." He paused with a little frown, "Um, but only you know that Danny here is my brother – everyone else needs to believe that he's an old college friend with an interest in conservation. In fact the whole of his family are very dedicated to the cause and will probably want to visit from time to time to see our work for themselves." Aloani gave a little laugh, her cheeks dimpling in what 'Dave' thought to be the most adorable way,

"Of course, and they would be most welcome to come and see our conservation work on Kaʻawale for themselves . Hop in the back Dave, we'll take you back to the house. Don't worry, we don't live in mud huts – you're gonna love the hot tub, it's completely powered by wave power. Kawai here is a whizz with gadgets, he knocked up an electricity-capture system using interconnected modules submerged in the bay. It took 2 weeks to dig the trench to bury the cables back to the houses, but now we have as much electricity as we need to power everything. Kai's kids are beside themselves as they get to use their PlayStation as much as they want now. We're fully connected to the internet too, it was an essential requirement as we need to be able to easily communicate with our research collaborators around the world. We also host virtual tours for school kids around the country."

Dave looked very pleased, he had been a bit worried that it was going to be some sort of tented community with no running water. He turned to the other two men, "You should probably be getting back, I'm sure the Navy will be needing their helicopter at some point. I can't thank you enough, Steve. Not having to break all contact with my family means the world to me." He leaned over to hug his brother again, "Later, Danny. Come and see me when you can." Danny nodded, not trusting himself to speak and they waved the man off as the battered gator trundled off towards the little group of houses over in the distance.

Danny spoke to Steve as they made their way back to the helicopter, resting his hand on the other man's arm to make his point, "I can't thank you enough either, Steve. It's not just my brother that this means the world to, you know." Steve turned to face his partner and just nodded,

"Yeah. I know, Buddy." Danny asked Steve a question as they climbed back into the helo,

"What did you have to do to get your hands on a sweet ride like this anyway?" Steve gave him a satisfied smirk,

"I just asked very nicely. The chief petty officer in charge of signing these babies out was charmed by my winning smile." Danny cottoned on quickly,

"Oh, Smooth Dog! This petty officer doesn't happen to be a lady now, does she? What, you hit her with the full force of your handsomeness? Poor woman, she would have been helpless to resist." Steve's smirk got bigger,

"You think I'm handsome?"

Danny shook his head in despair, "You're a goof, Steven. And yes, you are handsome. In fact, we're all gorgeous. Kono had it spot on when she declared us the most attractive task force ever formed. I think we should screen all future applicants based solely on their looks so as not to diminish our overall loveliness rating."

Steve let out a joyous laugh, "Pretty sure there's some anti-discrimination recruiting laws we would be falling foul of there, my friend . . ."


	58. Tech-fest

**Chapter 58**

There had been something that had been niggling at Steve ever since he became aware of the full extent of Wo Fat's underground hacking and intelligence network – the man had essentially created his own intelligence department, but with entirely nefarious goals in mind. These people would be looking for other employment and would be quite happy to provide their services to anyone with deep enough pockets. He thought of all the covert missions with which he had been involved and the direct action taken against terrorists, drug cartels and militia groups. What if one of these groups could get their hands on classified information? Five-0 also had highly sensitive intel on their computer, including the identities of confidential informants. These CIs were vital to their work, but would be at great risk of retribution if their names got out. He resolved to get everyone who knew about all this stuff in one room to hash out the likelihood of a data breach – he didn't have the understanding to know if this would even be possible as surely the secure Naval and Five-0 databases were impenetrable?

A few nights later, Harry cracked open another beer and passed it across to Toast. The man actually went by the name of Adam Charles, but the nickname bestowed upon him by Danny had stuck – although in his defence, he had seriously cut down on his marijuana consumption and was now gainfully employed by a tech company. Most people now just assumed that his nickname came about because of his undeniable love of breakfast. The man himself decided that if he ever made it big then he would fly to different parts of the world just to have breakfast somewhere.

Kono, Chin and Jerry were also present, having been asked to come around to Steve's house for drinks and a chat. Chin was intrigued, "So, Steve. What did you want to talk about?"

Steve talked them through his thought process about how he had gotten to thinking about all this highly classified intel and how bad it would be if a hacker could get their hands on it. He threw the question out there as to how secure all this classified data really was and what could be done if there was a breach. They were all comfortably seated in his living room and started to debate this in earnest. Steve just sat back and observed, as the combined brain power currently slouched on his sofa kicked into life. They banded around many different ideas, some immediately being shot down and others taken more seriously and debated.

After a couple of hours Steve had to ask for a translation of what they had concluded. Harry took point, "Even a highly-skilled hacker couldn't get anywhere near our Naval databases without having their door kicked in by a team of special operators within the hour . . . but, if money was no object and you had access to the combined skills of the right people then I could envisage that it would theoretically be possible. While we might not be able to stop it, then we should at least work on being able to detect a breach so we can take immediate preventative action." Chin chipped in,

"Same with the Five-0 database, someone might be able to get to it. I think we should seriously consider what is stored electronically and have some information in paper form only. Of course, we would need a very safe place to keep that, but at least it couldn't be hacked."

Harry added, "I'm going to take a proposal to ONI . . ." he paused when he saw the blank looks on the faces of the non-military people in the room, "um, sorry, the Office of Naval Intelligence. It's based at the National Maritime Intelligence Center in Maryland. Toast here has given me some ideas about how to detect a breach. At the moment, if you knew where to look, you could probably detect the evidence of a breach that a hacker would leave behind - while they might be able to get in, it's impossible to do that without leaving a trace. _But,_ that's no good if you don't know to look for it in the first place. We need a system that is scanning files all the time to look for this trace activity. Obviously it would be better to prevent unauthorised access ever happening, but this would be helpful if the unthinkable _did_ happen . . . excuse me, I'm going back to base to make some calls."

The eager young man nodded at everyone and then rushed off to his car. Toast was a genius and he wondered if the man could be tempted to work with the Navy as a consultant. He then quickly dismissed that idea, shuddering as he thought of the reaction of some of the higher-ups to the laidback stoner. At least Five-0 could see past the dubious first impression to the man's considerable capabilities. He was sure that Toast would prove his worth to the task force again in the future.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Life got back to normal for Five-0, cases were assigned to them and they solved them – most of the time. None of them like it when they couldn't wrap up a case, but it was just a fact of life that every law enforcement officer had to accept or risk the unsolved cases becoming an obsession. Although Steve really was trying to not cause mayhem just for the hell of it, sometimes the demands of the case came first and a bit, and on occasion quite a lot, of destruction of public property just seemed to happen and the ammo requisitions didn't seem to be getting any smaller.

Chin, ever the diplomat, had become extremely adept at condoning the methods employed by Five-0 to the Chief of Police and he seemed to be more at peace with the ends justifying the means - a number of very dangerous criminals were now no longer at large on his island because of the task force. They had crossed paths a few times with a competent ex-Homeland Security agent by the name of Lori Weston, who had been appointed by Sam Denning as his Public Safety Liaison. After a bit of initial friction, they discovered that she had profiling expertise and occasionally called upon her to help with cases. Steve wondered if the Governor might have assigned her to his team to keep an eye on them had he not made the effort to rein things in a bit. He shrugged, it didn't matter anyway - they were the fab four and got things done in their own way.

The new Organized Crime Unit had got up and running and from talking to the officers within the unit, Chin discovered that they were building an extensive database with far more functionality than he was used to seeing and would have access to intel from the specialist organized crime squads across Japan and China.

Deciding that he would like a bit of that for Five-0, he offered to provide his expertise during the design phase in return for being allowed to replicate the system at Five-0. He suggested that he 'borrow' a couple of HPD techies to help get it installed and validated on the surface table and Steve was quick to agree, liking anything that showed that the task force was cooperating more closely with their policing counterparts.

Chin was a happy bunny, in his element as he inputted data from all of their cases. The system would identify patterns and links between seemingly unrelated cases far better than the human eye. He had also deleted all electronic information on their CIs and now only had a list of their names and specialities in a paper-based file that was stored in a hidden safe at Five-0 HQ.

He also sought permission from Steve to bring Jerry Ortega in as a temporary consultant, as the man had been perfecting ways to link seemingly unrelated facts for years. Admittedly, his prior experience was skewed towards proving more outlandish theories but the basic methodology was the same. Steve found himself feeling strangely protective of the socially-awkward man, recognizing someone who just wanted to fit in but didn't quite know how. It was not unlike how he had felt when he'd been uprooted from his home, shipped off to boarding school and been the 'new boy'. He had struggled to find his place and had been bullied quite badly until he started to stand up for himself and found a couple of loyal friends. The experience had stayed with him and he intensely disliked seeing anyone being singled out for a perceived weakness. He had seen his fair share of 'hazing' in the Navy and had waded in on more than one occasion to put a stop to it when it had gone too far.

Danny was staying out of the way of the 'tech-fest' going on around the surface table and had taken refuge in his office. He looked up as Kono came sidling in and took a seat. She seemed reluctant to say anything and Danny wondered what was up. Eventually he had to start the conversation himself, "Anything I can help you with, Officer Kalakaua?" She sighed,

"I just wanted some advice and there's no way I'm going to Chin with this." Danny was intrigued and sat up in his chair,

"Pray tell. Just what can be bothering our resident rookie?" She cracked a smile and started to offload what was on her mind,

"I've been seeing Charlie for a little while now and he wants it to be more serious . . . but, I don't know if I'm ready. I mean, relationships fail all the time, I don't want to get hurt."

Danny made a face as he contemplated this, "Yeah, they do. But does that mean that you don't want to even try? That's a pretty risk-adverse approach from someone who jumps headlong into danger on a daily basis. You're only one notch down from McGarrett on the crazy scale." Kono frowned as she thought about Danny's words,

"Yeah, it's weird right? There's just so much expectation and I don't know if I'm ready." Danny smiled fondly at her,

"There's nothing wrong with not being ready. But you need to talk to Charlie, let him know how you're feeling – he might think that you don't like him and when I see you two together I get the distinct impression that you like him rather a lot."

Kono nodded and then asked another question, "Would you do it all again with Rachel, knowing what you do now?"

Now that was a loaded question and the detective gave it the consideration that it deserved. After a while he answered, "You know what? Yeah, I would. It didn't work out for us but there were lots of reasons why and I am forever grateful that our marriage gave me my little monkey. You're not committing to marrying the guy, but if you like him as much as I think you do then you should at the very least commit to exploring the possibility of something more serious." Kono jumped up from her chair,

"You're right Danny. I just got a bit panicked, that's all. I'll talk to Charlie tonight after work . . . thanks, I appreciate it." Danny waved off her thanks,

"Don't even mention it. I realise that I am the all-knowing voice of reason around here."

Kono laughed in his face, "Oh, hell no - that would be Chin, Brah! But you'll do as an acceptable backup when it comes to matters regarding my love life," and ran from his office before he could launch into an indignant tirade.


	59. Vengeance

**Chapter 59**

Chin had collaborated with Jerry to add even more functionality to the new Five-0 system. He wanted to be able to keep tabs on all of the criminals that had reason to hold a grudge against them. The story that Duke had recounted to him and Steve about being ambushed in the forest in the May of '83 by a madman with a grudge against Steve's Dad had really struck a nerve. Three police officers were shot that night by one man seeking vengeance on someone who had just been doing his job when he made sure that the man was imprisoned for his crimes. John McGarrett had been wearing a bullet-proof vest, but the other two officers weren't. One had died and they very nearly lost Duke that night as well. Only John's desperate attempts to keep pressure on the wounds had stopped him bleeding out before the ambulance had arrived on the scene.

Once he had finished inputting all of the Five-0 cases he started going back through every case that each of them had ever been involved with since starting their law enforcement careers. Kono didn't have any prior cases, but he most certainly did and so did Danny. The detective's former boss from Jersey, Captain Russo, had been only too happy to provide the information; finding it despicable when his officers and their families were targeted by criminals for just doing their job. He got back to Chin the next day with a comprehensive list of all of Danny's cases and had even included a brief summary of the particulars of each one, along with his personal cell if Chin needed to contact him for more details.

Chin couldn't include Steve's classified operations from his time in the Navy, but would talk to Harry about setting up a similar database on the Naval systems. They would now get alerts when a person of interest was released from prison and another if they were logged as passing through immigration to gain entry onto any of the Hawaiian islands. Of course, it wouldn't be any use if they were travelling under an assumed name but it was better than nothing.

Chin set the new software to search back over the past 2 years, he figured that any further back than that was pointless as if they hadn't tried to do something by that time then they probably never would. Most former felons just wanted to get on with their life once they were released and revenge was the last thing on their minds as that would put them on the fast track for going straight back to prison.

The system had immediately flagged a large number of names and Chin patiently scrolled through them all, most of them being petty criminals on the island whom he didn't consider to be a threat. He frowned as he came to a name he didn't recognize, it was one of Danny's old cases from just over 10 years ago. He clicked on the file attachment to find out more, a man called Rick Peterson had been released from prison just a few months ago. He was a former police officer from the Newark New Jersey Police Department who had been on the take and it was Danny's testimony that had been key to his conviction and subsequent decade-long incarceration.

The astute lieutenant had an uneasy feeling that he couldn't quite put his finger on, the two men had been partners and so this Peterson would have seen Danny's actions as the ultimate betrayal – not to mention that as a dirty cop he can't have had an easy 10 years in prison. With Steve and Danny out of cell phone range on the other side of the island, he checked the current time in Jersey and rang Captain Russo for more information and to gauge his views.

It was not encouraging, Russo sharing Chin's concern that Peterson could be bad news. The Jersey captain divulged that his wife had been good friends with Kim Peterson and the distraught woman had confided that her jailed husband had brought disgrace on their family and she was taking their son, Cole, and moving back to her home state. She had no intention of ever letting him see his kid again. The Captain had called back an hour later to warn Chin that Peterson had missed his last two check-ins with his parole officer and the patrol he sent to check on his house had reported that there was no sign that Peterson was currently living there. Unopened mail was piled up and the neighbors hadn't seen him for weeks.

The prison was able to send over a recent headshot of Rick Peterson and Chin started running facial recognition on all arrivals coming into Honolulu International Airport when a search of Peterson's name didn't bring up any records. The trouble was that he didn't have a timeframe to narrow down the search parameters and unfortunately he didn't get any hits. When Danny got back to the office, he reviewed all the information but just couldn't see the man coming all the way to Hawaii to exact revenge - believing it to be far more likely that he skipped town to try and track down Kim and Cole.

However, at Chin's urging, he reluctantly shared Rick Peterson's photo with his family. He hadn't wanted them being fearful for no reason, but eventually showed them Rick's picture just to keep Chin happy. He was forever grateful to the dogged lieutenant, as Grace had recognized the man only a few weeks later when he turned up at her private tennis club and tried to get the little girl to come with him under false pretences, posing as a beat cop. Grace instantly realized that this was the same man from the photos that her Danno had shown her, explaining that he was a very bad man and not to go anywhere with him.

She backed away and did exactly what her dad had told her to do if she ever found herself in this situation, basically to kick up an enormous fuss to get the people around you to take notice and come and help. Her brave tennis instructor had immediately waded in and taken a few blows for his trouble, but managed to physically prevent the fake cop from forcibly taking Grace. When Peterson had then cut his losses and tried to flee, the club's burly private security guards were able to restrain the disgraced former officer before he could leave the grounds and get away.

The team had been on his trail without even realizing it, chasing a man called Rick McGuire who was suspected of murdering Dave Collins, a Jersey-based marshal who had been escorting a prisoner on a flight to Oahu; he was a friend of Danny's and had been brutally murdered while trying to call Danny from the plane when he recognized Peterson. It transpired that Rick Peterson had taken on the identity of a deceased model citizen called Rick McGuire and when they raided the house under that name, they found hundreds of surveillance photos that the obsessed man had taken of Danny and his family. Peterson was charged with murder and attempted kidnapping. Danny had sat in the public gallery to provide support to Dave's widow and watched impassively as the man was sentenced to life with no parole. Nothing would bring back his friend from the mainland, but at least the man responsible for his murder would die in prison.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

_A glimpse into the future . . ._

No one could have possibly known at the time, but the system was to save Danny again 6 years later when it flagged that a man called Ray Gardner was released from prison in Newark and then a few months later travelled to Oahu. Danny had received the automated alert and had not immediately remembered the name. Puzzled, he had examined a recent photo of the man sent over by the prison and was still none the wiser. He had to read the case summary that Captain Russo had so diligently provided all those years ago before his reasons for wanting to harm Danny became apparent. He was the abusive husband of a lady called Brooke Gardner, a battered wife who Danny had helped to escape from her violent husband.

It was years ago when the detective was just a young officer on the mean streets of Jersey. He had tried in vain to convince Brooke to leave, but she was too under the thumb of her controlling spouse. Danny had gone to extreme measures to help the frightened woman and goaded her husband into attacking him in full view of a passing police patrol. When the man was sent to prison, Brooke was able to get away and start again somewhere new. Ray Gardner might have come after Danny the first time he was released from prison, at the time Danny had just made detective at his Jersey-based precinct. But the abusive man's foul temper got him into trouble before he had the chance. A petty bar brawl had turned nasty very quickly and he blinded someone in one eye when he smashed a beer bottle across their face. The judge had not been lenient and sentenced Gardner to a lengthy spell in prison.

The team didn't know it at the time, but the bitter man spent much of his second sentence blaming Danny for all his troubles and vowed to kill the man when he was finally released. He had tried to make good on that promise, buying a one-way ticket to Honolulu once he had finally managed to track Danny down to Oahu. He had been using a false name once on the island, going by the name Joshua Hollister, but had bought the plane ticket under his own name - obviously not wanting to risk getting caught travelling on a false passport and being prevented from carrying out his deranged revenge mission.

Five-0 had looped in HPD and a BOLO was issued for Ray Gardner. The next day, an eagle-eyed officer had spotted the wanted man and he instructed his partner to pull over their patrol car. They quickly exited their vehicle and flanked the man as he was walking down the street, their guns raised as they shouted at him to kneel down on the ground and put his hands on his head. Gardner had already acquired an unlicensed gun that he bought from a local thug the very first night he arrived on the island. He foolishly went for his gun, forcing the officers to discharge their weapons. He died right there in the street, wheezing out his last words as he coughed up blood. They were, "He deserved to die." Upon searching the dead man, one officer pulled out a photo that had been in his pocket - it was a picture of Danny with the words, 'he deserved to die' scrawled across it.

Danny had been pretty shaken up by the whole incident, this would be the second time that his past arrests from when he was just a beat cop in Jersey had come back to haunt him. Steve had recognized that his partner needed some time away and borrowed Kamekona's helicopter after explaining the situation to the canny entrepreneur. Steve decided that a visit to Danny's brother on his island hideaway was in order and they both stayed the night on the beautiful islet. Danny took great comfort from being around his brother and Steve went diving with Kawai and marvelled at the diversity of the marine life around the island and was deeply impressed by everything that the siblings had achieved.

When the pair got back they were horrified to discover that there had been an bioweapon incident involving an adrift yacht while they had been away. The initial call came in just hours after they had left and with Steve and Danny out of communication, the decision was made to dispatch the Coast Guard. When three of the crew had boarded the yacht they had discovered that everyone on board had died from some sort of haemorrhagic pathogen and immediately ordered their craft to move away and return to shore, leaving them exposed and alone on the boat. The rest of the Five-0 team had rapidly got to work trying to secure the antidote, but it had gone down right to the wire. By the time the team had arranged for a SAR helicopter to fly out to the yacht with the antidote, a brewing storm had caused the lockbox containing the vials of antidote to drop into the churning sea when the helo was forced to break away from the yacht during the transfer. One brave coast guard stranded on the yacht had jumped into the huge waves battering the side of the boat, but his weakened state had led to the poor man drowning as he was trying to retrieve the box. The remaining two people on board had succumbed to the virus that night. It was a truly dreadful outcome after coming so close to saving them. The team were all in a state of shock, berating themselves for their inability to save the coast guards.

Steve had stepped up as the leader of the Task Force and made them see that it was impossible to save everyone, but that it wouldn't ever stop them trying. He told them that being in law enforcement opened yourself up to vengeful criminals and heart breaking failures, but they all needed to focus on all the good that they did and remember the people that they _had_ managed to save. Danny caught his eye and gave him the slightest of smiles, understanding and appreciating what his partner was trying to say to him.


	60. Unauthorised access

**Chapter 60**

Steve was half-awake and just thinking about getting out of bed for his morning swim when he was fully woken up by a call from Joe. Harry had managed to convince the top brass at ONI to trial a new system that he had developed with significant input from Toast and a couple of his other IT contacts from around the world. The IT-savvy man was hopeful that it had the potential to automatically scan for and detect breaches in the Naval secure databases, but the system was currently untested. The decision was made to install it on just a limited subset of files to test its functionality. The plan had been to carry out a mock breach the following week, but before the testing could be conducted the system flagged an instance of unauthorized access. Harry was too far down the food chain to be told directly about anything, but a call had been placed to Admiral Janderman and he in turn had contacted Captain Brown and told him to 'deal with it'.

Eddie had briefed the Naval Intelligence officers at Pearl and also called Joe, even though he was not currently on duty – he knew the man had a vested interest in the subjects of the breach. The file that had been subject to the unauthorised access detailed a classified operation in South America, where SEAL Team 9 had conducted a raid on a compound belonging to the Alvaro Cartel. The full names and contact details of every member of SEAL Team 9 had been in the file.

Steve was already getting dressed while he was still talking to Joe. Steve wanted to first swing by the local CIA office to see what they knew about the Alvaro Cartel and then they made arrangements to talk with the Team's CO, Wade Gutches, currently taking recruits through their pool-based drills at Pearl. The two men waited at the side of the pool while Wade finished reaming out the exhausted recruits in the water before giving Steve and Joe his full attention. He creased up his forehead and frowned deeply at the news, "How sure are we that this is a real breach and not some software glitch." Steve shrugged,

"It's still in the testing phase and so anything's possible, but I'm inclined to take it seriously. My CIA contacts confirmed that Juan Alvaro has been reviving what was left of the cartel after the SEAL Team 9 raid and so my money's on him looking for revenge on the people who killed his brother, Rafael Alvaro." Gutches swore and then replied,

"God damn, I thought we took out all the high-ranking players and put them out of business for good . . . Gentleman, you already know the members of the Team from our little excursion in North Korea. We'll recall the entire Team back to base until we know the extent of the threat – I'll think up a suitable training exercise that needs to be conducted imminently. I'm not willing to risk my men's lives and would rather be over-cautious. The Navy can't start investigating if Alvaro has sent people after the Team members, but perhaps Five-0 can step in and help?" Steve nodded his head in agreement,

"Roger that, Sir. You get me the contact details of the Team members and I'll do the rest." Joe added,

"I'll provide assistance until such time that we can verify whether this threat is real or not." The two men left the training camp and were driving back to the Palace,

"I don't like this, Joe," said Steve, "this could get nasty really quickly." Joe concurred with the other man's grim assessment of the situation,

"Let's get ahead of this before the bodies start to drop. I have full confidence in the Task Force, let's get them to work."

With Steve's intel from the CIA, they soon had a much fuller picture of just how fast and how effectively Juan Alvaro had rebuilt his brother Rafael's empire. They estimated that the cartel had pulled in over $700 million in the past year, more than enough to pay for the world's best dark web hackers. Kono had been cross-checking all the passengers arriving in Hawaii from South America over the past few days. They had a list of known cartel associates and were running facial recognition on any passengers who might be a match. It took a number of hours but eventually Kono called them all over,

"Meet Hector Ruiz. He's linked to over 40 drug-related murders and has over 50 aliases, and that's just the ones that Interpol actually know about. He arrived a day ago, so hopefully he hasn't had chance to put his plans into action yet. How do we catch him?"

Steve's face went stormy as he stared at the hard features of a ruthless killer, one who was coming after his fellow SEALs, "Let's spring a trap and catch him like the rat he is." Over the next few hours, they had contacted as many of the SEAL Team 9 members as possible. Only three of them were currently on Oahu and so they would be Ruiz's first targets. Chin had a thought,

"This Juan Alvaro isn't going to be put off just because we catch the first hitman he sends. How do we stop him going after these boys again?" Joe and Steve exchanged a knowing look and it was Joe that spoke,

"If we catch Ruiz in the act, we just need him to tell us who he works for and the location of their compound and that will be enough to scramble a Team to put the cartel out of commission, this time permanently."

Joe and Steve liaised with Wade and soon established that two of the three SEALs on Oahu had already been recalled and had reported for their 'training duty' on base. The Five-0 team hadn't been able to get hold of Clay Garcia, his wife told them that they were having some time apart and that her husband had taken his camping gear and set off for the forest to clear his head. She confided that he was having some problems adjusting to being home and had even accused her of having an affair with a co-worker. She was seriously worried about his state of mind and told them that two bottles of whisky were missing from their drinks cabinet.

Danny handed them a map, "She knows the general area he goes to camp when he needs some alone-time, I've marked it on the map. How do you want to do this?"

Steve scanned the map, "I know this area, but it's pretty remote. Ruiz will take a day or so to try and locate all of the Oahu-based Team guys. We'll instruct Mrs. Garcia to tell whoever else asks about Clay to tell them exactly what she said to us. Ruiz will head up to this area to track down Garcia to kill him. Except we're not gonna let him anywhere near the man." Stealth was the order of the day for this mission and Joe and Steve decided to do this without the rest of the team. If the hitman saw anyone in the forest then he would abort his plan and they might never see him again.

After a few hours to get their gear together, the two men were being driven to Clay's favorite camping spot. Danny dropped them off and then drove away, they didn't want a parked car drawing any attention. It took a few hours of hard trekking before they reached the general area. Steve surveyed the surrounding forest with a trained eye, "He's gonna want to be at a higher elevation, within striking distance of a main trail but still completely hidden from it," he waved his hand towards a small hill, "I'm thinking he would be this way."

Joe grunted his agreement and they set off in the direction that Steve had indicated. They stuck to the trail, both men eyeing suitable camping spots as they walked. As they were getting to the highest part of the trail, Steve held out his arm to stop Joe. The man followed his gaze and immediately understood. They split up and circled quietly around until they saw the tent. Steve was being ultra-cautious, he didn't want to be attacked by a surprised SEAL.

However, his caution was completely unnecessary as Garcia was propped up against a rock near his tent with a half-full bottle of whiskey stood up next to him. As he got closer he could hear the gentle snores from the man and signalled to Joe to come and join him, "Shit, Joe. He's a bloody sitting duck when he's in this state of mind. When we get this case wrapped, I'm gonna get him to visit a psychologist who works out of Tripler. She's got the necessary security clearance to be able to hear classified intel during the sessions."

Joe looked at Steve with an unspoken question. Steve explained further, "I've had a couple of appointments, finding out about my not-dead mother and all this shit with Wo Fat brought a lot of things back up to the surface that I thought I'd buried. I didn't want to let it get to the point where I'd take myself up to the hills and give myself alcohol-poisoning like this poor sod." Joe considered his next words carefully, knowing that Steve was always striving to prove himself to him,

"It's okay to not be okay sometimes, Son. At least you recognize it and you're doing something about it before it spirals out of control. I've seen it happen too many times with Team Guys and it saddens me, asking for help is not a weakness." Steve swallowed a couple of times, he'd never opened up like this to his training CO and mentor,

"I've talked to Eddie quite a bit and that has helped a lot, but I just sort of felt that I would be letting you down if I admitted to having problems with missions that have gone bad. Losing Freddie was really hard." Joe knew exactly how close the two men had been, he had witnessed the bond being forged during BUD/S and knew that they had been as close as brothers. He squeezed Steve's shoulder,

"I'm here if you ever want to talk, but it's also fine if you find it easier to talk to Eddie . . . he's one hell of a good man. There's no right or wrong way to approach this, Steve." Steve got a little choked up, wishing he had opened up to Joe years ago. He looked down at the ground and got control of his emotions and back on point,

"Copy that, Commander. Now let's sort out Petty Officer Garcia and catch this sonovabitch red-handed."


	61. Peanut butter

**Chapter 61**

Joe rustled through his supplies and borrowed Clay's tin kettle to boil up some water to make some strong coffee. Steve roused the sleeping man and managed to get some sense out of him after a couple of cups of Joe's coffee. Clay opened up about his paranoia that his wife was cheating on him and how it was destroying his marriage. Steve told him about his positive experience with the Tripler-based psychologist and how she was helping him come to terms with some of the horrific things that he had seen during his SEAL missions. The other man listened and nodded, agreeing that maybe it would help him and perhaps even give him the chance to try and save his marriage if he could get his head on straight again. He sobered up when they told him why they were there, shocked that the Alvaro Cartel was back in business so soon after the SEAL Team 9 raid. They cooked up the food that Joe had brought and went through different options until they arrived at a plan that had the least risk and most chance of success.

Steve received a call on the sat phone that he had packed, having anticipated the lack of cell reception in their remote spot. Mrs. Garcia had just been contacted by an old Navy 'buddy' wanting to meet up with Clay. She had duly shared everything she knew about her husband's current whereabouts, including her concerns about his distressed state of mind, asking the 'friend' to try and talk him into coming home. They figured that this concerned so-called friend would be showing up before too long.

Steve set off down the trail to leave the hitman a few clues, he shouldn't get suspicious that it was too easy to find the SEAL as his wife had done a good job of expressing her worries about her husband's fragile state of mind. Steve then camouflaged himself in a tree that overlooked the main trail and settled down to wait. Clay was back in his spot leant up against the rock, the half-empty whiskey bottle propped up next to him. Joe was well-hidden from view, with eyes on Clay. Patience was something that was instilled into every SEAL and the men waited with a sense of unhurried calm, ready to react when the time came and not expending any unnecessary energy in the intervening period.

Steve heard the man long before he laid eyes on him. A visual check confirmed that it was Hector Ruiz. He was panting a bit from the exertion, the trail was fairly challenging unless you were an experienced hiker. Steve had left a clue on the trail near his location and the hitman paused when he saw the broken branches and trampled vegetation leading off the main trail and up a side path. The man obligingly followed it and Steve gave him a few minutes and then silently slipped down from the tree and started tracking him from the rear. He kept his distance and trailed Ruiz all the way back to Garcia's camp. Joe no doubt had eyes on him as well at this point.

Hector cautiously made his way across to the snoring man, not wanting to be taken by surprise – he was fully aware of the skills that even a drink-impaired SEAL possessed. He just watched the prone man for a minute and twitched his lips up in a nasty little smile to himself - this was going to be very easy indeed, the man's wife hadn't been exaggerating when she said that her husband was in a bad place. He took a vial from his backpack and carefully emptied the contents into the half-empty whiskey bottle. He swilled it around to get it to mix into the liquid and then very carefully started to make his way back the way he had come. Steve popped up from behind a bush with a gun trained on the surprised man. He looked back to see the 'comatose' SEAL suddenly very much awake, also holding a weapon in his direction.

Joe came out from behind a tree and walked over to Ruiz. He kept a safe distance as he spoke to the man, "I'd like a little word Mr. Ruiz. You're going to tell me all about Juan Alvaro and how he paid you for this revenge mission against SEAL Team 9. Then you're going to tell me exactly where the Alvaro Cartel is conducting its business these days." The hitman recovered from his initial shock and just sneered at Joe,

"I don't think so. You're an American on U.S. soil, you can't do anything other than arrest me." Joe smirked at Steve and then turned his attention back to Ruiz,

"Oh, bless him. He thinks we're going to follow due process." Steve chuckled darkly, no mirth in his laughter. Then Joe spoke again, "Did you know that this forest is teaming with wild boar . . . nasty little critters they are, they've been known to gore a man to death. They use their tusks to disembowel you and will eat you as your flesh starts to rot. Do you know what their favorite food is?" He paused, but it was a rhetorical question and so he wasn't expecting a response. He obligingly provided the correct answer for his prisoner, "Peanut butter . . . they'd literally kill to get to the stuff, they can sniff it out from about half a mile away if the wind is just right." Joe looked at Garcia, "You know these woods, how many wild boar do you reckon are within striking distance of this camp at this moment in time?" Clay pondered the question,

"I've seen plenty of evidence that they are in the area since I arrived. They don't like the fire, so that will keep them away for now. I'd estimate that there are several within a half mile radius of our position." Joe nodded in satisfaction,

"Excellent, we won't have to wait too long then. Garcia, extinguish that fire would you?" He dropped his backpack and retrieved a full pot of peanut butter. Steve moved closer and swiftly took the hitman down. He immobilized him with zip ties and roughly sliced open the hitman's shirt, nicking his chest slightly in the process,

"Oops, sorry about that. Boar quite like the smell of blood too." Joe used a spatula to scoop out large heaps of peanut butter and started to smear it liberally all over Ruiz's chest. He kept spooning it out until the jar was empty. Hector had kept quiet during all of this but was starting to inwardly panic. The other men abruptly walked away, leaving the bound man all alone in the clearing. When they first arrived, they had left out some corn that had started to sour just behind the camp. The strong smell attracted the boar but deterred other animals such as deer.

Sure enough, there was ample evidence that the corn was having the desired effect with boar scat in evidence around the mostly-eaten corn. Garcia carefully laid a trail of corn back to the camp and the men settled down to wait. After a few more hours, a boar came into view and greedily followed the trail of corn. The wild animal froze as it became aware of the man on the ground but was finding the smell of peanut butter very attractive. It tentatively came a little closer to Ruiz, which was when the man saw the boar. He started to scream, fear overcoming him, "Help, help! I'll tell you what you want to know . . . just get this thing away from me! Please, I'm begging you!"

Steve smirked, that had been easier than he thought it would be. He jogged out of his hiding place, keeping a wary eye on the boar. Joe and Clay were right behind him and the extra movement was enough to spook the animal, which took off into the forest. Ruiz was hyperventilating by this point and it took a swift slap to his face to focus his attention back onto Steve. He blurted out how Juan Alvaro had contracted him to take out the SEAL Team as payback for killing Rafael and the other members of the cartel. Joe made a note of the bank account number, so they could trace the payment back to the cartel as evidence. Hector gave them all the details of the compound including its location and the layout and how many men would be in residence. Juan was staying there while he awaited news from the hitman, wanting photo confirmation of each and every kill. Ruiz also confirmed that the list was in Juan's possession and had only been shared with himself, the drug lord not wanting to risk the exposure that would come from taking out multiple contracts at once.

Joe bent down next to the panicked man and scraped off the peanut butter. He sliced through the man's ankle ties and pulled him to his feet. He asked Clay if he was coming with them but the SEAL declined; he wanted to take a few more days and have the solitude of the forest to himself. Steve nodded, understanding completely. They repacked their bags for the return journey, Steve calling his team to update them on what they had discovered from the hitman. It took quite a while to make their way back down and by the time they had completed their trek Danny and Kono were waiting for them in the trail parking area, along with CIA Agent Kendricks. He gladly took Hector Ruiz off Steve's hands – they had been hunting him for years. Another agent bundled him into the back of an unmarked van and they took off to an undisclosed destination. Steve didn't care, the hitman would be off U.S soil before nightfall and facing an unpleasant future in a CIA Black Site before going on trial for the murder of a Mexico City Police Captain.

Joe had taken the sat phone from Steve and was making a call back to base. They had the confession on tape and Chin had already traced the bank account and would send this across to Naval Intelligence. Commander Gutches had taken point in the Naval command center and was well on with making preparations for a strike on the compound, codenamed Operation Payback. SEAL Team 4 was en route and would breach the perimeter and then take out everyone in the compound. They knew that the vengeful brother would be there, so this time the cartel would be shut down for good.

Joe had finished his phone call and addressed Steve directly, "Commander Gutches wanted me to pass on a message to you . . ." He took Steve's hand and shook it, "Outstanding work, Commander. He's cleared it for your entire team to come onto base at Pearl to watch the live takedown for yourselves. It's scheduled for 5 hours from now." Steve replied,

"Thank you, Sir. As you know, there were plenty of other people involved in pulling this off and we wouldn't have known a thing about it without Lt. Brown's new software. It had been on my mind ever since Wo Fat revealed his personal intelligence operation to me. The combined power of people like that is truly terrifying." Joe was in full agreement and had an update for Steve from the Navy techs,

"They're not quite as clever as they think they are though. The new software not only detected the breach in the first place, but it gave us the means to track the hack back to its source. It came from a warehouse in Iceland, the country's a known hotspot for dark web hackers. We have people apprehending them now and then we will be able to trace back to other people in their nasty little network. ONI are all over it, this will be the biggest lead they've had for years."

Steve let himself have a satisfied smile at the news, "Well, that might stop another attack of this nature in the future if we can catch the worst of the hackers - there can only be so many people in the world who have this level of capability." Danny and Kono joined in the conversation, Danny speaking up first,

"That's good news, I wouldn't want someone else being able to get their hands on Seal Team contact details. We have these guys to thank for bringing you home safely from North Korea - I'm glad we were able to return the favor."

Kono chipped in, "You got that right, Brah!"


	62. Dusty secrets

**Chapter 62**

Steve was relaxing on his beach just soaking up the last of the sun after a long swim when he heard someone coming up behind him. He smiled, "You fancied soaking up a bit of island sunset, Danno? I've got Longboards in the fridge if you want to grab us a couple."

"No, not Danno – just your sister." Steve jumped up to hug her,

"Mary, what brings you by? Not that you need a reason. It's your house too." She smirked,

"I'm very glad that you feel that way because I have big plans for the place. I've been planning it and getting quotes from builders ever since you disappeared off with Danny on Operation Razza." She couldn't help the smirk that formed when she said the mission name out loud, "You know, that man's a genius, no one can think past the stupid name to even wonder what it was all about . . . what was it all about, anyway?"

Steve gave his devious sister a smirk back, "Nice try, Mare. It's better you don't know about that. Anyway, I was half-expecting to find the house being ripped apart by builders when we got back but you hadn't done a thing . . . I should have known that you were just biding your time! So, what are you thinking of doing to the place?" She sighed a little sadly,

"It's way past time we made some major changes, got rid of some of the ghosts - put our own stamp on our home." Steve couldn't agree more, his sessions with the therapist had got him thinking about how he was still clinging to the past and that it wasn't healthy for him. He followed the determined young woman into their family home to look over the proposed workplans, glad that she was getting into the renovation project. She was currently crashing with friends, not wanting to stay in the house, and he hoped that she would see it as her home too after it had been modernized.

It was about 3 weeks later when he was really regretting ever agreeing to the project. The place was a mess, it wasn't just a lick of paint - floorboards were being replaced and there was dusty plasterboard everywhere. Steve had initially wanted to do everything himself, the control freak in him finding it hard to hand over the reins to someone else. Mary had stood right in front of him, hands on hips, and fixed him with 'that look'. She had pointed out that he worked practically 24/7 and they would still be waiting for it to be finished this time next year. He had capitulated with a dramatic eyeroll, having to concede that she was absolutely right. A competent contractor would have the work done in a month or so. He had the money stashed aside to pay for it, being on the payroll for both the State of Hawaii and the Navy had its benefits. He was still living in the house during the renovations, politely declining Danny's offer to come stay with him. Even in the midst of all the dusty chaos, it was still preferable to Danny's poky little apartment. He was pulled from his reverie by the contractor shouting him over. The man pointed to something that was resting under the floorboards of the living room.

Steve was puzzled and knelt down to retrieve it and found himself holding a very old and rusty lockbox. He didn't have the key and so took it into his garage to break the lock open. A couple of hard blows from his claw hammer dealt with the lock easily enough and Steve flipped open the box, full of curiosity. Was it a secret stash of money that had been forgotten about or items of the family's precious jewellery? Maybe Mary had hidden a secret diary and it was full of embarrassing scribbles that he could tease his sibling with at a later date. The box looked to be very old and was extremely corroded from its years sat in the slightly damp atmosphere under the floorboards. His child-like excitement at finding hidden 'treasure' was stopped short when he saw the contents and after a cursory examination of the contents the first person he called was his mentor, "Um, Joe. It's Steve. Are you free right now?" On hearing the other man's response he sighed with relief, "That's great. Can you come round the house as soon as you can? I'm in the garage, there's something you really need to see. I can't get into it over the phone."

Steve ran back into the house and made his way up to the attic and started looking around the dusty old storage space. There was a good chance that there was an old microfiche reader here somewhere as he remembered his dad 'borrowing' one from HPD, as he had a bad habit of bringing work home with him and liked to be able to review all the evidence in the comfort of his own study. As far as Steve could remember, the machine never made its way back to the department and so it was more than likely gathering dust in a corner of their attic, along with all the other junk that had made its way up there. Steve found what he was looking for and lugged the heavy item back down the loft ladder and took it out to the garage. He examined the microfiche that he had found in the box, carefully moving the reader across each section. He let his head rest back on the shelving behind him and scrunched up his eyes in frustration, _"What the hell was wrong with his parents?"_ This was the second box that he had found now with secrets bad enough to get people killed.

He was still sat in his garage when his mentor arrived, "What's up, Son? You were a bit cryptic on the phone." Steve just pushed the box into this hands and let Joe have a minute to examine the contents and look at the microfiche. When Joe finally looked up Steve couldn't help his outburst,

"She had this in the house all this time. With Dad, me and Mary. They're un-redacted CIA files. Everything about the mission to take out Yao Fat, all the people involved. There looks to be all sorts of other classified intel as well and incriminating evidence on people who are very high-profile now. Like Tyler Cain, our Director of National Intelligence." Joe was shell-shocked the minute he had laid eyes on everything in the box and joined Steve in his condemnation,

"Holy hell. People would kill to get this back, I mean literally kill anyone in their way – like you and Mary when you just kids. I can't believe that Doris would have this in your family home and put you all at risk like that." Steve just shook his head sadly,

"I would, I'm starting to believe that Shelburne would do just about anything." Joe slumped down next to his protégé,

"So what do we do? This information is dangerous." Steve couldn't agree more. He sighed before speaking,

"I'm gonna take it in person to Director Thompson. I believe her when she says she wants to root out all the corruption in her agency. This will give her plenty of ammunition to take some people down." Joe frowned, deep lines appearing on his forehead as he thought of something,

"And if it implicates your mother in anything?"

"Then so be it."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Three days and one plane journey later found Margaret Thompson and Steve sat in the same booth as before in the upmarket restaurant in DC. She placed her hand onto the box of evidence, "Are you sure you want to do this, Commander. It could have implications for Shelburne?" Steve just nodded,

"The lies, all the secrecy and living in the shadows . . . lockboxes full of highly classified incriminating intel under our floorboards – it's just madness and it has to stop. My line in the sand is drawn right here. Please, Director - take this and do whatever it takes to root them all out. I'm just done."

The wise lady completely understood, the man sat in front of her had been impacted by this since he was 15. His family had been torn apart and he had been forced to listen to his father being murdered over the phone. A dangerous foe had then set out to destroy him. He really didn't need to explain himself any further and she told him that. Steve asked if she would accompany him to Agent Greer's grave to pay their respects. With a nod, she followed him out of the restaurant and suggested a good florist that was on the way to the cemetery. Steve had already called his ex-CIA friend and Tom Hennessy met them at the cemetery and the three of them solemnly placed the fresh flowers into the holders next to the headstone. They took the time to reflect on another life lost in the line of duty and the sacrifices that they were all prepared to make to keep their country safe and free.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Steve exited the airport to find Danny waiting for him in the no-stopping zone. He smirked, hoping that his partner had managed to annoy the over-zealous parking official, "Let me guess. Kono was tracking me again?"

Danny could only shrug, just being at the airport as Steve's flight arrived was all the evidence the other man needed. He let Steve take the keys to the Camaro, not even putting up a token protest and they drove back to Steve's house. Danny didn't say anything on the ride over, wanting it to be a surprise. He wasn't disappointed, Steve was certainly surprised as all of his ohana popped up from behind the sofa and other assorted furniture as he flicked on the lights,

"Surprise!"

It was only his combat training that stopped him flinching at the loud collective shout and sudden loud bangs and distinctive whistling noises that came from a large number of party poppers going off at once. Steve was bemused as he watched the brightly-colored streamers fly gracefully through the air to drape themselves all over his home and was pretty sure that the one that Grace had popped contained a deadly payload of sparkly glitter. Shit, he would be vacuuming that up for weeks. He then noticed the table piled high with party food and bottles of beer and soft drinks lined up on his sideboard. Steve looked to Danny for an explanation with one raised eyebrow as he crossed his arms across his chest.

The detective obliged, "It's a house-warming party for you, Babe." The other man was confused,

"But I've lived here for nearly a year now?"

Danny begged to differ, "No, not like this. Take a look, we got the renovations finished while you were on the mainland. This is a whole new house and that deserves a fresh start. So, _like I said_ – it's a house-warming party." Steve took a moment to fully appreciate his new-look home and the happy faces of his ohana. He let a genuine warm smile come over his face,

"That it is, my friend. That it is."


	63. A family affair

**Chapter 63**

Kono had taken Danny's advice to heart and decided to open up to Charlie, he really was a sweet man and she could see it turning into something much more serious. She wished she could talk to her mother and get her advice, but her beloved Mom had suffered a devastating aneurysm a few years back. Although Nani Kalakaua survived, she was left brain-damaged and unable to speak. That was another sign that Charlie was the right man for her - from the minute he had met her parents he had been at ease with her disabled mother, not being awkward and just chatting to her as normal. She knew her Mom understood what was being said to her, just from her expressions and the way she would ever so lightly squeeze her hand sometimes.

For such a fearless warrior, Kono could be a bit of a wuss when it came to matters of the heart and she had built herself up to having 'the conversation' over a couple of days. After it was all over, she laughed as she wondered what on earth she had been worried about. Charlie was totally cool with her indecision, saying that it was a big deal for him as well. He had secretly liked the girl ever since their awkward first kiss when playing spin the bottle on the beach all those years ago, but this was different. This was an actual relationship now they were both adults and he was terrified of screwing it up too. He made a silent pact with himself to not push Kono and just let things develop at their own pace, then if it did lead somewhere they could both be sure it was what they wanted.

Chin had noticed, but resolved not to give his cousin a hard time. He knew how risk-adverse she was when it came to relationships and didn't want to make her feel that she was somehow doing something wrong. His mind drifted to his own blossoming romance with the lovely Ms. Hills. She had a sharp mind and was full of life, having reverted back to her normal bubbly personality once all the stress of the toolbox evidence saga had dissipated. The new Governor recognized talent when he saw it and had already offered her a job in his administration.

A few years ago Chin had proposed to Malia Waincroft, a successful doctor on the island. Then the whole situation of the stolen money had arisen and he had pushed away everyone in his life for a time. It had been him doing the pushing away, but he knew that some people had thought that it was her who had left him and he felt very guilty about that. She had been nothing but supportive and he had refused to let her help him. He hadn't seen her since they broke up, but decided then and there to seek her out and apologize. He grabbed his keys and headed to the hospital.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Malia came down from the ward and stopped dead in her tracks. Chin was sat waiting in the corridor, he stood up and approached her nervously, "Um, hi. I wondered if you had time for a quick word? That is, if you're not too busy." She looked puzzled but quickly agreed and led him into an empty office nearby,

"It's been a long time, Chin. How are you, have things got better for you?" Chin sighed at her concern for him, she was genuinely interested in his well-being even after everything that had happened. She really was a good woman,

"I'm good. I was offered a spot on the Five-0 Task Force and then it all came out that it was my uncle who took the money and so HPD gave me a promotion to lieutenant . . . but, I actually came to apologize for everything I put you through back then. I didn't give you the chance to help me and that was selfish. I also let people think that it was you who broke things off and that was unforgivable . . . I was just so angry and bitter and realize now that it made me push everyone away so I didn't drag them down with me. You were far too good to be associated with a dirty cop."

She looked stunned at Chin's uncharacteristic outburst, "You were never a dirty cop, Chin. If other people couldn't see that, then to hell with them! I can't lie, it really hurt me when Kono and other members of your family automatically assumed that I just dropped you at the first sign of trouble." Chin had to swallow a few times to control his emotions and he wished so much that things could have been different,

"You're the best person I know, Malia. I just wanted to come and tell you that and say how sorry I am for my behaviour when I was first accused of taking that damn money. You deserve to be happy and a really big part of me wishes that it was with me, but I think that is just me being selfish and it actually might not be the best thing for you." Malia looked at the man with a wistful expression and she let out a long sigh,

"I thought for a very long time that my happiness would be with you, be perhaps you are right. Some things should just stay in the past," she looked bashful for a minute and glanced away as she spoke, "there's a nice doctor here that I have my eye on, not that he knows it yet." Chin gave a little nod of his head and the corner of his mouth lifted up in a rueful smile,

"Well I only hope that he realizes the good thing that he could have if and when you make your move. I'm happy for you, Malia." She smiled back shyly, Chin could still make her heart flutter when he directed that smile at her,

"Thank you . . . oh, I nearly forgot to tell you, I'm an Auntie now to a very special little girl. Gabriel has met a lovely lady called Vanessa and they had baby Sara in the summer of 09. I don't see them much, his job keeps him in South America most of the time. Maybe I'll put in for some leave and go visit for a week or two. They have a beautiful estate, he's doing very well in his career."

"That's really great, Malia. I'm so pleased that Gabriel had made something of himself, I was very worried when he got caught up in that gang when he was a teenager," he paused, "well, I said what I came to say, I'm just sorry I didn't see you sooner. Time slips away and before you know it another year has gone by." She nodded,

"That it does," Malia stepped forward and fondly took his face in her hands as she placed a gentle kiss on his forehead, "you're a good man, Chin Ho Kelly. Don't ever forget it." Chin watched her walk away, part of him so very sad at giving up this wonderful woman. But some things just had to be left in the past. He promised himself that he would tell Laura how he felt and see if she wanted to make things more serious.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

It was Sunday morning and Steve had eaten a leisurely breakfast after his morning swim and was eagerly awaiting the arrival of Danny and Grace. It was surf lesson time and Danny preferred the privacy of Steve's beach – there was no chance of another surfer crashing into his precious little daughter. Kono sometimes rocked up to assist - Steve deferring to her superior knowledge and prowess when it came to riding the waves, but she wouldn't be coming today as she was spending the weekend with Charlie. He checked his watch, they would be here soon and so he pulled out the surfboards in preparation and decided that a light wax couldn't hurt.

He let a warm smile come over his face at the thought of Grace's reaction to seeing the bigger board that he had selected for her, promising that she would be 'upgraded' if she had developed her skills sufficiently. Today was the day to try the next size up and Steve knew that she would be very excited. He was just about to fetch the pot of wax from his garage when he saw a small motor boat coming closer, as if it was aiming directly for his beach.

He frowned and walked closer to the shoreline to get a better look, shielding his eyes from the sun with his hand. The craft was much closer now and too late he saw the raised gun of the person on the boat. There was no gun shot, but he felt the sharp sting of a dart and looked down to see it sticking out of his bare chest. He stared at it in disbelief, slowly raising his hand to pull it out and just letting it tumble from his fingers onto the sand. In a few seconds his vision was already blurring and he sank onto his knees and then collapsed back onto the sand. He was just clinging to consciousness by the time the person from the boat had waded in from where it was moored and stood over him. He blinked as he struggled to bring his vision into focus and could only manage one word before he passed out,

"Mom?"


	64. On the trail

**Chapter 64**

Doris McGarrett dragged her son into the water and then supported him as she floated his body over to her boat. She clambered back into the vessel and then leant over to grab Steve. It took a considerable effort and much determination on her part, he was a heavy mass of muscle, but she persevered and finally managed to haul him aboard. When his full weight was out of the water, it made Doris tumble back into the boat with Steve on top of her and she had to extract herself from the jumble of arms and legs. Breathing heaving with the effort, she quickly checked that the unconscious man was alright. The dart had gone, probably washed away in the ocean, and so she didn't worry about it. She checked his vitals and satisfied that all was well, the woman then pulled the cord to start the outboard motor. She made sure that her son was carefully laid out in the bottom of the boat and placed a blanket under his head to stop it banging as they rocked in the small waves. She took a seat at the back of the small boat and guided the craft out to sea and then navigated around the rocky shoreline. The boat was out of sight in minutes.

Danny frowned as he stood at the front door. He had rung the bell a couple of times and Steve had still not answered. He pulled out his cell and called him. Grace's keen ears heard it ringing from around the back of the house. Danny guided her around the back and they came in through the side gate. Steve's phone was ringing, but the man was nowhere to be seen. Grace pointed to the surf boards, "Uncle Steve has got the boards out ready, can I check which one he's got out for me?"

Steve had been talking about moving Grace up to the next level and she was very excited to see if he had got out the bigger board for her. Her dad waved her off and she rushed off to check, "Danno, he's got out the bigger one for me. I must be getting really good!" Danny followed her at a slower pace and smiled indulgently,

"But of course, munchkin. You'll have inherited your surfing prowess from your father." She looked at him sideways, not at all sure about the validity of that statement. She couldn't see her Uncle Steve anywhere and turned back to her father,

"Where do you think Uncle Steve is, Danno?" He frowned, looking around for Steve. He was always ready for them arriving, Danny suspecting that he was just as excited as Grace. His detective-eyes were drawn to the water, it looked like drag marks had been left in the sand. Grace shouted to her dad,

"Danno, what's this?" her little fingers were just reaching for something in the sand when her dad snatched her back,

"No! Don't touch that." She pulled her hand back like it had been burnt with a shocked gasp. Danny knelt down in the sand and carefully extracted the item, holding it by the very tip of his fingertips. He held it up and looked at it, recognizing it as a missile from a dart gun. He immediately stood up and ushered his daughter into the house, while calling Chin, "Chin, I'm at Steve's house, you need to get yourself down here. Something's wrong. Call Kono. I'll get hold of Joe - I've got Steve's phone here with all his contacts." Danny had reluctantly then called Rachel to collect Grace, to leave him free to investigate his friend's disappearance. His heart broke as he voluntarily gave up his weekend with his precious monkey but his boy was missing and needed him more.

They were all stood at the water's edge, examining the drag marks and the dart. Joe asked Danny, "Was there a boat in sight when you arrived? Maybe in the distance?" Danny shook his head,

"No. Nothing. I was stood right here, staring straight out to sea. I would've seen something if it had been there. it makes me think that it was a small boat that could manoeuvre round the coast line in shallower water. I think this had just happened before I got to the house, otherwise the drag marks would have been much less obvious than they were." Joe nodded,

"How quick can you get the dart analysed. It might help us if we know what was in it, plus there may even be fingerprints." Kono opened an unused plastic food bag that she had snagged from Steve's kitchen and held it open for Danny to drop the evidence in for safekeeping. She turned to Joe,

"I was with Charlie when I got the call – I'm meeting him at the crime lab now, he's already there getting all the machines powered back up," she turned and ran to her car, shouting back at them, "I'll call you as soon as I have anything." The rest of the team and Joe decided that nothing could be achieved at Steve's house and so they left for the Palace, locking up behind them.

They were crowded around the surface table and had just started to pull up anything that they could think of - old cases, Navy connections and possible suspects. Suddenly Joe slapped his forehead with his hand in utter frustration, "Damn, how did I not remember until now? Steve's still got that CIA tracker embedded under his arm. I'll get hold of Harry, see if he can activate it. I was told it had a battery life of a few hours once it was activated – Steve can't be that far away yet."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Harry rushed to find his dad in his office on base. He quickly relayed the information that Steve had been taken from his beach, probably by small boat, "I'm going to activate the tracking device now, see if I can get a fix on his location." Eddie nearly shoved his chair over backwards as he jumped to his feet,

"Lead the way, time is of the essence - they could be in international waters in a few more hours." The two men rushed down the corridor to Harry's work station and the younger man wasted no time in bringing up the tracking program and remotely activated the device, all the while silently willing the thing to spring into life. He let out a breath that he hadn't realized he had been holding when it came up with a signal. His keen eyes watched the signal for a minute,

"It's moving, fast enough to be in a vehicle but not at the sort of speed you would expect on a main road . . . locating the coordinates now . . . yep, got the sucker." He turned to Eddie and updated the worried man, "Whoever has Steve is heading up one of the tracks at Honolulu Watershed Forest Reserve. It's really not that far from Steve's house, they're not making that much effort to take him far away. I mean, they could have transferred from a small boat to a ship out at sea and been on their way to anywhere in Asia if they had really wanted, right?" Eddie nodded,

"Let's get all this information across to Five-0. Joe's with them as well, I trust them to come up with a plan to get him back if we can keep them updated with his current location."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Danny was happy for Chin to take the lead on planning the rescue operation. To be honest, it wasn't that complicated now that they had a lead on Steve's current location. Much as if the man himself were here, they were in the process of gearing up with enough firepower to take down a small army and at Commander White's suggestion had even got the smoke grenades and gas masks. They were going up against an unknown number of hostiles and who knew how highly trained they might be and so it was prudent to prepare for the worst case scenario. Joe suggested that they discretely case out the location where Steve was being held first and if they were in any doubt then he would call JBPHH and request a team of special operators to provide additional support.

Steve's partner had followed his teammates in a bit of a daze, muscle memory taking over as he securely fastened his tac vest around his body and filled his holsters with weapons. He was feeling strangely out of sorts after a very vivid dream the night before. When he woke up he had dismissed it as just a dream, but now with Steve missing he was finding himself contemplating what it all meant. His vision had been made up of a series of graphic glimpses into the future, not unlike what had happened to Ebenezer Scrooge when he had been visited by the Ghost of Christmas Future. Danny had been an older man and had seen himself with his beloved Gracie on her wedding day and been required to talk her down from her pre-ceremony jitters . . the irony wasn't lost on him. There had been a bustling Italian restaurant with him running the kitchen and Steve in charge of the front of house, clearly it had been a joint venture between himself and his partner - that had confused him, who in their right minds would want to open a restaurant when the failure rate was so high? He would rather die in an enormous explosion following his partner into yet another crazy situation than from the stress of running a restaurant.

Then what had really stayed with him was the two of them in their very old age, just sat bickering in the battered pair of Adirondack chairs on Steve's private beach. All he could think of was would they get his partner back so he could live long enough to grow old and be granted the time to just sit out on his beach. The dream had been so real and he very badly wanted it to come true 30 years from now. Hawaii was his home now and he couldn't think of anyone he would rather be hanging out with in his dotage than his crazy Neanderthal partner. He was the only one who absorbed all of Danny's snarking and worrying and came right back at him. Steve was a master at deflecting all of that nervous energy and getting Danny's mind off the worst case scenario all the time. Danny had long since realized that many of the incendiary comments that the SEAL made were too well-timed to be coincidence, their 'carguments' a very welcome respite from all of the angst that the detective stored up when life conspired against him.

Chin had been trying to get his attention and Danny started back into the moment. He held up his hand in apology and asked Chin to go through the plan one more time.


	65. Bitter truths

**Chapter 65**

Steve slowly came to as she was being bumped around in the back of an old pickup truck. He had been rolled up in a blanket like a hot dog, but it was open just near his head and so wasn't suffocating him. He couldn't move though, his limbs felt weak and his feeble struggling couldn't get him untangled from the blanket. He groaned as the truck lurched over a particularly large pothole, but the blanket cushioned him and kept him wedged in the bed of the truck. His brain was a bit slow catching up but he recalled his last coherent thought on his beach, _"Jesus Christ, it was his own mother who had taken him by force. What the hell?"_ He couldn't really make any sense of it, his thoughts were all jumbled up and he let his eyes slide shut again.

He was vaguely aware of the vehicle coming to a halt and the sound of the tailgate being dropped down. He felt himself sliding across the metal and then dropping into something, but it didn't hurt as the blanket had cushioned his fall. The squeak of a wheel turning made him think he was in some sort of cart or trolley and he felt himself moving slowly. The person pushing the trolley was grunting from the exertion and let out a sigh of relief as they stopped. He was pulled out of the cart, still wrapped in the blanket. He groaned again when the blanket was unrolled, the world spinning as he rolled out onto the floor.

His hands and feet were immediately secured with what felt like rubber restraints, they were soft and didn't cut into his skin. He slowly opened his eyes and tried to steady his vision, but the world was still quite blurry. He was in some sort of rustic log cabin, but beyond that he couldn't have told you where he was being held. He shut his eyes again and was aware of laying there for a little while until a jug of water was splashed onto his face and that brought everything into focus with a jolt. He just looked at the person who had abducted him from his own back yard, a yard they knew all too well themselves. He tried to speak but couldn't quite form the words and slumped back on the floor in exhaustion.

Doris McGarrett observed her son and when she was satisfied that he was coherent and able to understand, she started to speak, "I had to talk to you and since you wouldn't see me, I was forced to improvise," she paused and glanced at Steve but he chose to stay quiet, "no one will give me the chance to explain my actions, I did what I had to do to protect my family. Why does no one understand? I gave up everything to keep you safe." She grabbed a water bottle and carefully tipped it up for Steve to take a drink. Steve gratefully swallowed the liquid and then found himself able to choke out a reply, his voice still very rough,

" _Safe?_ That's what you're calling it? How safe was Dad when a bullet was ripping through his brain because his investigation into _your_ so-called death got too close for comfort? How safe was Mary when she was thrown into the trunk of a car to be taken to her certain death after the Yazuka had done interrogating her? How safe was I when Wo Fat had me chained up in a bunker in North Korea?" The effort of speaking had taken its toll and he closed his eyes. Doris stalked over to him and slapped him on his face to get his focus back on her,

"None of that was meant to happen. Why couldn't you all just leave it alone? If you had done that then you _would_ have been safe. None of this is my fault." Steve stared at her incredulously. He was finding it easier to think clearly as the drug was wearing off and he let rip, years of built up anger and resentment coming out unchecked. He would have shouted if he could, but he couldn't make his voice go louder than a pained croak,

"This is _all_ on you. The choices you made that we had no control over. Dad died a lonely old man, haunted for years by the thought that it was _his_ investigation into the Yakuza had got his wife killed. He sent us away and effectively orphaned us because he was so scared. Can you imagine the level of fear he must have felt to make him give up his own children? Mary was so messed up, she's only now getting her life back on track. Poor Aunt Deb was all set to get a recording contract and was forced to put her life on hold to look after _your_ daughter. I was all alone in a shitty boarding school at my most vulnerable and the other kids bullied me for months – it was a living hell. I cut Dad out of my life to spite him because I thought he didn't love me – we never had a proper relationship again."

Doris sniffed back her tears, "I didn't ever expect John to send you both away, by the time I found out you already had new lives on the mainland and I thought it would be more disruptive to try and get you back to Oahu. What was I supposed to do? I knew that my past was coming back to haunt me and you could have all been killed." Steve snorted derisively,

"Oh, and that was your only option? You weren't some helpless soccer mom, you had the resources of the CIA to fall back on. You could have made us all 'disappear'. Yeah, we would've had to leave our home but at least we could've still been a family – started again somewhere new, in another country even!" Steve breathed heavily as he tried to keep his composure, "You know what I think, _Mom_ ," he drawled the last word out in a mocking tone, "I think you got bored of your mundane suburban life with your 2.4 kids and white picket fence and this threat gave you an excuse to leave it all behind and tell yourself that you were being virtuous, just looking out for the safety of your family. Win-win, huh?"

Doris shook her head violently, this wasn't going how it was meant to at all. She should be having a joyous reunion with her children, full of wonder at getting their mother back after all these years of thinking she was dead. She grabbed hold of Steve's arms and shook him, desperately trying to get him to see things her way, "No, no, no!" she shrieked in his face, "you've got it all wrong, why can't you see it from my point of view. I've given up everything for this family and this is the thanks I get for my sacrifice?"

Steve didn't answer, he had nothing left to say to this stranger in front of him. This wasn't the loving mother he remembered from his childhood. He started to wonder if she had suffered from some sort of psychotic break from reality. After all, she had been turned into a killer of an innocent young mother when she was still in her early twenties. What else had she been asked to do as a clandestine CIA agent? He had wanted to confront her about the dangerous 'leverage' that she had stashed under the floorboards of their family home but decided to keep quiet about that. He honestly had no idea how she would react if she found out that it was now in the hands of the CIA Director.

Doris had run crying from the room, leaving Steve bound on the floor. He tested his restraints, but he had no strength in his limbs. His bindings were completely secure and he couldn't get them to loosen at all. He was starting to worry about his safety, this person who had him at their mercy was not his Mom anymore. He made the decision to not antagonize her further and try and work on getting her to let him go.

As he looked around, he caught a glimpse of a face at the dirty little window of the log cabin and felt an overwhelming sense of relief. Joe caught his eye and gave the hand signal for Steve to hold his breath. Steve nodded his understanding and started to draw in deep breaths, as if he was about to go freediving. About 30 seconds later, he heard the sound of glass breaking and the clatter of smoke grenades as they bounced off the floor of the cabin. That was his cue to start holding his breath, his eyes squeezed tightly shut against the irritating smoke. Moments later, the front and back doors of the cabin were kicked open and his team swarmed in wearing gas masks. Joe swiftly made his way over to Steve and used his knife to slice open his bindings. Steve was not able to stand unaided and his mentor supported him as they stumbled out from the cabin. His mother was already outside, her eyes streaming from the smoke, being held face-down on the ground by Chin and Kono as they secured her hands with zip ties.

Steve didn't look at her, he kept his eyes resolutely fixed dead ahead. Danny had run back to the vehicles which had been left out of sight further down the trail and manoeuvred the blue Silverado right next to the two men. The drugged man let Joe help him onto the back seat of his truck, he couldn't coordinate his movements at all. Joe didn't need to ask the SEAL if he was okay, it was clear that he wasn't. Steve found that he couldn't properly hold himself up in the seat and so let himself lean against the other man. He shook his head in disbelief, "I can't believe she did this. All she cares about is everything that _she_ had to give up – that person is not my mother."

Joe glared over at the woman on the ground, beyond angry at her actions. Although he could just about understand her motivation, wanting to have the opportunity to talk to her son, he was truly astounded at the way she had gone about it. Danny had turned around from his place in the driver's seat, wanting confirmation that his partner was alright. He leaned over and rested his hand on Steve's arm, "Hey, Babe. You okay? Are there any injuries we should know about?"

Steve managed to shake his head, but all his emotions started to bubble up and he was beginning to have some trouble with his breathing. Joe gestured for the detective to give him some room and immediately steadied Steve and talked him through the comfortingly familiar SEAL combat breathing exercises. He gave a tiny shake of his head as Steve's anxious Five-0 team came closer to see what was happening. "I've got this," he mouthed at them and they stood down, trusting him to look after their boss and friend.


	66. Frequent flyer

**Chapter 66**

Once Steve had his breathing back under control, Danny and Joe moved him into the front seat of the truck. Joe secured the seatbelt around him and had immediately driven his protégé to Tripler for observation, not at all happy with the lasting effects from whatever drug Doris had administered. The woman in question was not saying anything, maintaining that she wouldn't have done anything to hurt her own son but not providing the team with anything further. Charlie was still running the samples through his machines and was waiting for a result. Steve was uncharacteristically quiet for the entire journey, not protesting the trip to the hospital and that was a huge red flag in itself. His mentor made a mental note to see if the psychologist that Steve was seeing was on duty so that an appointment could be arranged at her earliest convenience. He had accompanied the man through the hospital and waited with him until he was shooed from the room by the non-nonsense nurse as he came in with all the supplies he needed to set up an IV.

Danny had watched as Joe set off to the hospital in Steve's truck and hadn't known what to do with Doris McGarrett, not realizing until that moment quite how much he had wanted his indestructible Energizer Bunny partner to jump up with a smirk and a cheeky, "Book 'em, Danno." To see his friend in such a state at the hands of his own mother had made his blood boil and he had to work really hard to not 'accidently' whack his prisoners head on the side of the car when he guided her into the back. Chin had called for backup and Danny was very relieved to see Duke emerging from one of the squad cars that had cautiously made its way up the rough track. Chin had spoken personally to the experienced officer, knowing instinctively that he would handle the situation with discretion and care. Danny decided to hand Mrs. McGarrett off to HPD and let them book her and do the interrogation; he didn't want to have to be in the same car as her or interact with the woman in any way.

They had already performed a sweep of the cabin and not found anything apart from an old cart, a thick blanket and the rubber bindings. The truck she had arrived in was very old and dirty but otherwise empty. They were not achieving anything by stopping in the woods and so Chin gave the order for everyone to go to Tripler to check on Steve and leave the scene to HPD forensics, so they could record and collect evidence to be used for any subsequent prosecution.

Joe had wandered downstairs and found the vending machine in the main lobby. It plopped out a cup full of indeterminate brown sludge and he was just stirring his 'coffee' suspiciously, wondering if he should sue for misrepresentation, when the Five-0 team arrived. He glanced up and took in their worried faces as he fully appreciated the depth of their feelings for his substitute son – they were more than just teammates and he was glad Steve had surrounded himself with such loyal friends.

Joe duly provided his typical succinct sitrep and they were pleased to hear that Steve's vitals were all within normal range and the doctors were expecting his muscle weakness to wear off as the drug was flushed from his system; they had him hooked up to an IV and were pushing fluids into him to speed up the process. The results from Charlie's analysis revealed it to be a fairly innocuous tranquilizer that shouldn't cause any long-term issues. Commander White indicated that they should go up to his room to see him, knowing that they wouldn't be satisfied until they had seen Steve for themselves.

Two of the nurses had been busy gossiping about their latest patient and debating if he had a significant other; Commander McGarrett was something of a local celebrity and his rugged good looks certainly didn't hurt. They quickly changed the topic when they saw the rest of Five-0 coming towards the nurses' station to ask if it was okay to see their boss now. Steve had been propped up in bed with lots of pillows and apart from the IV looked to be in good shape. There were no other machines monitoring his vitals, the nurses having no cause to do anything other than a cursory 2 hourly check.

The hospitalized man gave them a weak smile as his team piled into the hospital room, "Hey, guys. Thanks for the rescue, I was honestly starting to get worried about Shelburne's state of mind." Danny and Chin exchanged a brief glance between them at Steve's use of his mother's CIA handle instead of 'my mother' or even her name. Kono leaned in for a quick hug,

"Joe remembered that you still had your tracker implanted under your arm and had Harry activate it and trace its location. Good job it worked, otherwise we never would've found you . . . in fact, I'm going to see about getting you another one. Bad guys keep taking you way too often for my liking." At her comment Steve gave her a wry smile,

"Well, no one was expecting my own mother to fall into the 'bad guy' category. I'm going to suggest that she undergoes a psych eval, I think she may have suffered some sort of mental breakdown."

Chin stepped forward, "I can see to that, Steve. You could be right, this is not the Doris McGarrett that I remember." Steve looked over at his partner,

"I'm sorry, man. Gracie missed her surf lesson and I messed up your weekend with her." Danny frowned and took a few quick steps forward until he was standing at the side of the hospital bed,

"Would you just stop that, you giant goof! The ocean will still be there, ready to take her vengeance on any foolish souls who are misguided enough to attempt to stand upright on a plank of wood for longer than 30 seconds – Rachel's already agreed to let me have Grace next weekend in place of this one . . . and don't think for a minute that my eagle-eyed daughter didn't notice she was being entrusted with the bigger board. Now I'll have to listen to her nagging me all week to let her have the chance to show you what she can do. Thank you very much for that, Steven."

Steve's thoughts had been spiralling into a very dark place and he revelled in the feeling of normality at the familiar rant. At yet another low point of his life, his partner was there to provide support and stop him sinking into depression. He managed a little smile and felt up to baiting Danny, "Surfboards are not made from wood, Danno, that would be no good at all - they're polyurethane or polystyrene foam covered with layers of fiberglass cloth and a polyester or epoxy resin." Danny stepped back and lanced his hand through the air in a determined sweep,

"Oh my God, enough with the chemistry lesson already. It's a floating death trap, regardless of its composition." The spirited banter continued, Chin and Kono joining in the debate – Kono quick to point out the many health and psychological benefits of her beloved pastime. They were interrupted by the arrival of Steve's doctor, she was tall and slender with her light chestnut brown hair secured in a neat bun,

"Did I just hear the virtue of our national sport being besmirched?" She mock-glared at Danny with a barely hidden smirk, "How very dare you, Detective Williams." The man sighed in resignation,

"Well hello to you too, Dr. Shaw - I can see that this conversation is not going my way, so I'll make a tactical retreat while I still have the moral victory." Steve and the doctor exchanged a knowing look. Danny was using military speak in his every day conversation without even noticing. Mia Shaw was an Army Captain, having enlisted in the military during her training at medical school through the Health Services Scholarship Program. When she qualified as a doctor she was commissioned as an officer, taking the rank of captain and had been stationed all over the world. But she was born and raised on Oahu and was delighted to score a sweet commission back on the island and had started a surgical training position. However, she was seeing more of the Five-0 team than she would like as one or more of them kept being brought in for medical attention. She proceeded to tell them so,

"I'm not too happy to be seeing another one of you in a hospital bed again so soon, although why I am not surprised to find that it is Commander McGarrett . . . again. Perhaps we should start a frequent flyer-type loyalty programme just for Five-0 and you all get a bonus injection every tenth visit?" She glanced at Steve, "I'm tempted to write your name as Commander Commotion on these medical notes." Danny doubled over with a bark of laughter at that last comment,

"Oh, I like it. There are so many words we could use that mean chaos and mayhem. Let me see . . . it could be Commander Bedlam or Havoc or Pandemonium or Turmoil . . . but I think I like your suggestion best." Danny waved his arm in the direction of the bed-ridden man,

"I hardly ever needed the attention of medical professionals until I met this animal. Have I mentioned that he got me shot within hours of conscripting me against my will onto the Task Force."

Steve vigorously defended himself against this vicious character assassination, "Hey, how was it my fault? We were following a lead and you were stood behind the door of a known gun dealer. _Maybe_ if you had positioned yourself to one side then he would have missed. Plus, you were miserable as sin at HPD. I saved you from yourself. You love it on Five-0 and you love me."

Danny had to concede that he made a good point, "Okay, maybe it's not all bad . . . and yeah, I love you - but you're still an animal."

The team stayed for another hour and made an effort to not dwell on the situation and instead kept the conversation light as they gently teased one another - the unspoken agreement between them to just be there for their boss. They eventually got kicked out of the room so the nurses could take their next round of obs. After finding Joe in the canteen, they let him know that they were on their way back to the Palace to take care of the paperwork. Chin also needed to swing by HPD HQ to speak with Duke and arrange for a psychological evaluation for Doris. Danny wondered about involving the CIA. Joe mused on this for a minute, "Well, technically she is still one of their agents and so it would be prudent to involve the agency. I'll take care of that and leave everything else in the capable hands of the Task Force."

When Joe had finished his meal, he made his way back up to Steve's room. He stopped at the door as he could hear voices, a quick peek into the room confirmed that Captain Shaw was in with her patient. She was perched on the edge of Steve's bed and the two of them were chatting animatedly, discovering that they had both attended Kukui High. Steve had been 2 years ahead, so they never crossed paths, but they laughed about the same tutors and recalled all the stupid things that they had each got up to as kids. From the sounds of it, Mia had been just as bad as Steve – driving her parents to despair with her adventurous streak. Joe backed away quietly with a little smile and left them to it. He was suddenly a lot less worried about Steve's state of mind.


	67. Celebrations

**Chapter 67**

Steve had been recalled to JBPHH for a briefing and saw Harry coming towards him as he made his way down the corridor, he did a double-take as the man got closer, noticing the new rank insignia on the other man's uniform, "Lt. Commander Brown? Or should I say Commander Brown, now?" He checked no one was in sight and then gave Harry a one-armed hug, "Congratulations, my friend. You deserve it!" Harry looked pleased as punch,

"Yeah, I couldn't believe it – the Promotions Board convened last week and well . . . I've been promoted to a Lt. Commander," the unassuming man looked down at his feet, "I've also been offered a commission with ONI, in the Hopper Information Services Center – I'd have my own unit providing support for global maritime and intelligence operations." Steve gave a low whistle,

"Oh, that's huge. Don't hesitate to take it, the islands of Hawaii will still be here whenever you want to visit." Harry looked pleased at Steve's encouragement,

"Thanks, man. Hey, why are you here?" Steve gave a quick shrug of his shoulders,

"I don't know . . . your Dad and Joe called me in for a briefing. I'm just on my way now." They parted ways and Steve knocked smartly on the door of Captain Brown's office. He entered at the command and stood waiting for the other man to speak,

"Ah, you're here. Just let me call in Commander White," Eddie made the necessary call and a minute later Joe came into his office, "you're probably wondering why I recalled you to base for this meeting, Commander?" Steve just raised an eyebrow and nodded. Eddie continued, "The Promotions Board considered all the nominations last Thursday−"

Steve spoke up at that point, "Yes, Sir. I just saw Commander Brown on my way to your office. He also told me about his new commission with ONI. It's very well deserved, Sir." Eddie allowed himself a proud parental smile before schooling his features,

"Indeed it is. Well, _as I was saying_ ," he glanced at Steve, who looked suitably chastened for his previous interruption, "following the Board meeting, I am pleased to announce your own promotion to Commander." Steve's jaw dropped, he wasn't sure that he had heard the man right. Joe stepped forward to shake his hand,

"Congratulations, Commander. The Board was impressed with your leadership of the mission to dismantle Wo Fat's organization as well as your role in the op to apprehend the hitman dispatched to take out SEAL Team 9. Although it's quite unusual to be considered for promotion whilst in the reserves, it's certainly not unheard of and yours was considered to be a special case as you had been acting as the Navy liaison for much of the time."

Steve was in a daze as he accepted the praise from his two mentors and then went to find Harry. The two men congratulated each other on their respective promotions and Steve realized that he would be really sorry to see the other man transferred away from Pearl. But that was the nature of the Navy, you went where you were needed and where it best suited your own career progression. Steve had no doubt that the intelligent young man would make Admiral if he put his mind to it. For himself, he was fairly sure that his new rank would be the pinnacle of his career and that was fine – he was better suited to a command role where he could still take an active part in the mission; when he was too old and decrepit to do that then it was time to retire from the Navy altogether.

Before he had left Eddie's office, the Captain had invited him over for a double celebration party. He viewed Steve as family and so in his mind he had two sons who were both celebrating very well-deserved promotions. Steve readily agreed and was told he could bring someone if he liked. He nodded, a little smile coming over his face as he thought who he would like to ask. Later that night he was on the phone to Mia Shaw - the good doctor had given Steve her phone number as he was discharged. She was delighted to hear about his promotion and was free the evening of the party and so was happy to accompany Steve.

Neither of them used the word 'date', but it most certainly was a date. As soon as Mia put the phone down she ran to her closet and started rifling through the hangers. Damn, she was going to need a new dress that hit that sweet spot between not-too-formal but still dressy.

On the day of the party, Steve knocked on her door at precisely 18:00 just as Mia knew he would. You could set your clock by the timekeeping of military personnel and she was exactly the same and so had made sure that she would be ready to leave at precisely 18:00. None of this 'be down in 10 minutes' crap with her. Steve was looking smart in a well-tailored suit and formal shirt, but no tie – well, they were in Hawaii. He stopped breathing for just a second when she appeared at the door, swinging it open to reveal her delicate pale green dress. She had matched it with pretty high-heeled sandals and her hair was down. He hadn't realized that it was gently curly and reached down below her shoulders. She was beautiful.

Mia gave herself an internal high-five, not missing his stunned reaction to her appearance – that rushed trip to the mall had been totally worth it. She took a minute to check him out and was very pleased by what she saw, the man sure scrubbed up good. If he got bored of running Five-0 then he would probably have a good career as an international playboy if he wanted. The handsome couple made their way to the blue truck, Steve opening the door for the lady and offering his hand to boost her up onto the passenger seat. Mia saw the twitch of the curtain from the house of her recently divorced neighbour and smugly thought, _"Hands off, you little minx – I saw him first."_

Eleanor greeted them on arrival and Steve made the intros. The Brown family matriarch instantly took a liking to Mia and whisked her off to introduce her to some of the other guests. After eating their fill of delicious food, the guests had organically formed into smaller groups and lively conversation could be heard throughout the house. Mia had been brought up on Oahu, just like Steve, and so could speak pidgin and was currently engaged in an animated 'discussion' with friends of the Browns who were also locals. She dragged Steve into the argument about where the best surf spot was on the island and he robustly defended the honor of the North Shore, slipping in and out of pidgin as he riffed with the other guests. Mia had her opinions too and eloquently espoused the benefits of Sandy Beach. They then all laughed at the less than imaginative naming of the renowned beach and took turns to come up with a better name. Steve won the unofficial competition with his suggestion of 'Razza Bay'. It then took him 10 minutes to explain about his Jersey-born-and-damn-well-proud-of-it detective partner and how he had come up with the ridiculous name for one of their operations.

Later that evening, a few people had started dancing and Steve held out his hand to lead Mia over to the dancefloor. She accepted with a smile and they danced to the slow music, Steve pulling her in close. Mia was genuinely disappointed when the evening ended and she was being helped down from Steve's truck outside her house. She didn't miss the twitch of the curtain and her cheeky side came out, "Um, Steve. We've got my very nosy neighbor spying on us right now. How about we give her something to gossip about?" Steve grinned as he casually glanced over his shoulder to the house behind them,

"I like your thinking, Captain Shaw. I concur with your assessment of the situation, she's definitely looking our way," and with that he swept Mia up in his arms and kissed her like she was the heroine in a romantic period drama. Mia giggled as he gently placed her back on her feet,

"Oh, that should do it, Commander McGarrett . . . well, until next time?" He nodded and suddenly felt himself getting very shy,

"Thank you for coming with me this evening, I had a really nice time. I'd like to do it again . . . very soon . . . um, how are you fixed at the weekend?" She smiled, delighted that he was putting himself out there,

"Let me check my schedule and I'll let you know which day. I usually get at least either the Saturday or Sunday off – we try and fix the rotas so that everyone gets a bit of down time at the weekend. What do you suggest?"

"I'd love to show you my house, it's got private access to the beach. Bring your bathing suit and your paddleboard. I'll make a picnic and we can paddle to a nice little spot if the waves are not too big." Mia was in full agreement with his plans,

"It doesn't matter if the waves are too big, we can just go surfing instead and then have the picnic on your beach. I'll bring both boards and we can see when I arrive. I'll call you when I know which day I'm free. Thank you for a lovely evening." She leaned over and placed a delicate peck on his cheek and then made her way inside her house.

Steve watched until his date was safely indoors and then touched his cheek with a little smile and got back in his truck, thinking about how much he had enjoyed the evening with the lovely doctor as he drove home. She was smart, lively and more than a match for him. It had only been one date, but he was already daring to hope that this could turn into something a lot more serious.


	68. A dark shadow

**Chapter 68**

Steve was in trouble, the interrogation had been brutal - his usual default setting of, "I can neither confirm nor deny," not getting him the results he wanted. The man regretted being surrounded by such sharp minds. Danny especially had an uncanny ability to ferret out the truth, but Kono was shaping up to be an expert interrogator as well.

By this point Steve had developed a very pronounced aneurysm-face and then his body posture slumped, shoulders visibly dropping and at that exact moment they knew that they had him. He made one desperate last-ditch attempt to save himself by forcefully pronouncing that Five-0 wasn't a democracy, it was actually a benevolent dictatorship - but that didn't work either. Sure enough the doomed man gave it up with a put-upon sigh, "Yes, okay . . . I took Mia, um Dr. Shaw, with me to the Brown's party. She was my date. We had a very nice evening together."

Kono just arched an eyebrow and looked pointedly at her boss, waiting for more. Steve cracked. God, these people were relentless, "And yes, we have seen each other since. We went paddle boarding last Sunday and we're going hiking to the waterfalls this weekend if the weather holds . . . shit, I think we're officially dating." The SEAL's jaw dropped as Danny made a triumphant noise and money changed hands. Danny explained,

"Joe gave us the heads up about you and the good doctor. We've had a pool going ever since about when you'd finally admit it." Steve huffed indignantly and crossed his arms defensively across his chest,

"I'm glad the current status of my love life is providing you with amusement and the means to line your own pockets. Christ, you're all worse than a group of aunties in a sewing circle." Kono immediately jumped in to defend herself,

"Huh, you can talk. You were all over me and Charlie and what about Chin and Laura?" Steve's expression turned thoughtful as he pondered on that. He turned to face the man in question,

"Yeah, Chin – what about you and Laura?" Kono settled back with a vindicated expression on her face as it was Chin's turn in the 'dating' spotlight,

"Well, seeing as you ask – I've asked Laura to move in with me and she agreed," he paused a beat, "apparently I'm going shopping for cushions and throws at the weekend." Kono gave a squeal of delight,

"Cushions and throws? That's it, Cuz – your fate is sealed!" Chin looked at Danny, mystified,

"They're just soft furnishings, right?" Danny shook his head wisely while clasping his hands in front of him, looking uncannily like Yoda himself,

"No, Chin. They most certainly are not. Just remember to invite us to the wedding."

Their very un-task force-like conversation was interrupted by Steve's cell and he answered it with his usual abrupt greeting. He listened to the caller and then disconnected the call, "We've got a case – body found down at the marina, the Governor has requested Five-0 take point. Gear up, we're moving out . . ."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Their latest case was straightforward and it gave Steve time to meet up with his CIA contacts, Kendricks and Douglas. He found himself back in the creepy parking garage for another clandestine meeting, although he was rather starting to like the whole cliché of it - imagining himself as the protagonist of a convoluted spy thriller. He was brought back to the present when the agents started to speak. They had news of his mother, or Shelburne as he had taken to thinking of her. Anna updated him, "The psychologist uncovered deep-seated paranoia and a number of signs that suggest that she has had some form of psychotic break. He has recommended that she be admitted to a secure facility for further observation and treatment before any charges be brought against her. I understand that she is facing over 10 years in prison for your abduction and forced imprisonment."

Steve nodded, "Yeah, even if I choose not to press charges personally, the Governor is pushing for a prosecution on my behalf. He has taken this criminal act against the head of his Task Force very personally . . . I could tell that something was very wrong in the cabin," he gave a deep sigh and rubbed his forehead, "I just want her to get the help that she needs." Kendricks chipped in,

"The agency recognizes it was complicit in this goat rope, Commander. We'll do all we can to provide the necessary support to Shelburne, we have a duty to all of our agents." Steve nodded in thanks,

"Um, did you get anywhere with my other request for information?" Agent Douglas passed over a file,

"We were authorized to share this with you, on the condition that it goes no further." Steve fully understood their position,

"Yes, of course. Thank you both, I appreciate this. I'll destroy the file as soon as I have reviewed the contents." They exchanged quick handshakes and went their separate ways. Steve waited until he was home that night to look through the file. It detailed the current progress of Jenna Kaye and Josh Hirsch following the first few months of rehab and counselling that they had been undergoing, both of them now at treatment facilities on the mainland.

It was both good and bad news. Agent Hirsch had made better than expected progress, responding well to a healthy diet and carefully-graded exercise to regain his muscle mass and general fitness. With a few more months of intensive rehab it was predicted that he would most likely be at the level of fitness required for fieldwork. However, the man had already indicated that he wished to return to a purely desk-based role at Langley, where his extensive operational experience would be invaluable in the planning phase of special ops. He had also responded well in his sessions with the psychologist, being very willing to engage in the sessions and was generally dealing with the aftermath of his extended imprisonment admirably. However, the psychologist knew that his patient had lost a lot of confidence as well as his sense of 'self' and was beginning the painstaking work to build that back up. The psychological trauma had been significant and he wanted his patient to be truly able to move on and not just be good at pretending that everything was okay.

Steve was pleased to read of his progress, having been very impressed with the man's actions in the North Korean bunker; it was Josh who had uncovered the hidden code and given them a perfect excuse to be taken out of the bunker straight into the waiting arms of the SEAL Team. Tucked in with the medical notes was a single piece of paper detailing the outcome of a visit that Josh had made to Jenna just before she was discharged from the Red Cross hospital in Osaka. It had been a supervised visit and the attending agent had discretely taken notes.

Steve scanned through the hand-written notes and shook his head sadly. Josh had not been able to forgive his fiancée for betraying Five-0 and Steve when she was working under their protection. The thought that she so easily brokered a deal that condemned another man to be tortured in exactly the same way as he had been was just too much for him to process. Whilst he fully understood the reasons why, he just couldn't condone the way she had gone about trying to secure his release. He had also admitted that he was not the same confident CIA special activities team leader that he used to be and needed time to work on restoring his own sense of self-belief before he had the emotional capacity to deal with a relationship and the needs of someone else. At the end of his visit, he had broken off their engagement and returned home to Langley to continue his physical therapy and counselling sessions.

Steve moved onto the documents containing Jenna's progress and found himself deeply affected by the high-price that she had paid for her part in all of this. Jenna had suffered lasting brain damage from the near-fatal shooting. She had partial paralysis of her left side, needing a cane to support herself as she walked. The rehab team were confident that she would slowly regain increased function in her left side, but that it would take many more months of relentless rehabilitation. Jenna's speech was improving after intensive sessions with a speech therapist; the healthcare professional was hopeful that in time it would return to almost normal, teaching Jenna little tricks to overcome her difficulty with certain words and sounds. Her cognitive functions were all within an acceptable range, but they doubted that she would ever be able to process large quantities of data and piece them together like she had when working as a CIA analyst. Wo Fat had taken so much from the young woman; her health, her abilities, her career and now her fiancé.

They were both unrecognizable from that happy newly-engaged couple from 4 years ago, when they were busy making plans for a lifetime together and completely unaware of the extreme misfortune laying in wait for them. The legacy of one man's evil empire continued to cast a long dark shadow . . . Steve couldn't help but wonder just how much of Wo Fat's character had been influenced by the tragic events that took place all those years ago and how much was due to some sort of inherent evil in the man. Saying that, he had 'lost' his own family too and hadn't gone on a murderous rampage, instead choosing to protect the innocent and vulnerable. Wo Fat might have believed them to be half-brothers who 'shared' the same mother, but Steve knew differently. He whispered to himself, _"You're not my brother . . ."_ as he re-lived the moment that he killed the other man in North Korea. Steve had taken many lives in the course of his career but felt the weight of every death, no matter how well-deserved. However, he could admit to himself that he was glad that his nemesis was dead - too many people had suffered and it never would have ended had he still been alive. Wo Fat had both the wealth and connections to get him out of any prison, no matter how secure it appeared.

Even before knowing what he did now about Jenna's disabilities, Steve had already requested that the Company treat the woman kindly explaining that she had been formally deputized onto Five-0 at the time and had asked Governor Denning to intervene. On the back of this, Jenna's employer was going to provide her with a pension on the grounds that she had acquired a workplace disability. Her parents were still both alive and well and had made the necessary adaptations to their house to cater to their daughter's needs and were looking forward to having her home when she was released from the rehab center.

Steve resolved to visit Jenna when she was settled, to let her know that he understood her actions and that he was sorry that things had turned out the way they had. His initial anger at her betrayal had subsided, leaving him open to considering all of the facts in a rational manner – he realized that the guilt that he himself felt for not being able to prevent his father's death was exactly the same for Jenna. When she had been presented with an opportunity to reverse the mistakes from the past she had taken it, Wo Fat knowing exactly how to manipulate the vulnerable CIA analyst for his own benefit.

He would use his trip to catch up with Tom Hennessy at the same time. The man had resigned from the CIA and decided to stop in DC, taking Steve up on his offer to hook him up with his ex-SEAL buddies. Tom had fitted right in and was proving invaluable to their private security firm. They had a date in the summer pencilled in for Steve to come over and visit for a few days; Steve was not keen on the bitter east coast winters and so had chosen a time of year to suit him.

Steve had a standing invitation to have lunch with Director Thompson whenever he was in town as well. He would take the lady up on her offer, it would be nice to meet and talk about something other than highly classified missions from the past. He knew that Margaret had personally ensured that Doris McGarrett was receiving the best care possible and was very grateful to the CIA Director for her compassion.


	69. New life and sad goodbyes

**Chapter 69**

_6 Years Later . . ._

Steve found himself facing off with a formidable foe, he must've been in tougher situations but at this moment in time he couldn't immediately recall exactly when. His empty fingers twitched, missing the feel of the solid weight of a weapon in his hands. He kept his voice calm, years of combat training not letting the rising panic he was feeling creep into his tone, "Jonathan, I need you to stand down and give it to me. Just hand it over and it'll all be okay."

His 4 year old son froze on the spot and tilted his head to one side as he processed his dad's words, " _Hmmm . . . his full name had been used instead of Johnny, nothing good could come of this,"_ he pouted and then held out the dripping paintbrush for Steve to take, "Sorry, Daddy," the little boy mumbled. Steve was too relieved to have the offending item back in his possession to chastise his son any further. He quickly wiped up the paint drips from the floor before they went hard and took the paintbrush back through to the nursery, where his wife was carefully applying a transfer to one of the walls that had already been painted. The baby room was being converted to a neutral color scheme of pale fawn and cream, with soft yellow highlights.

Johnny had been upgraded to his new 'big boy' room and it was colorfully decorated in a jungle theme, complete with camouflage netting hanging down from his bed and a hanging chair made from knotted rope suspended from his ceiling. It was double-size and filled with cushions, making it the perfect place to snuggle in with his dad for his bedtime story. Mia stood up and cracked her back with a groan, "You'd better be arriving soon, my little one or Mommy is going to have back problems for life," she turned to Steve, "she's coming soon, I can feel it." Steve couldn't help but smile upon hearing his wife's words; Mia was insisting that baby number two would be a little girl - but they hadn't found out the gender, wanting it to be a surprise. She had even refused to consider any boys names as she was so sure that it was a girl. He came up behind Mia and started to massage the tight muscles in her back. She let out a filthy-sounding moan, "Oh my God, that feels so good. Don't stop."

Steve's lips lifted into a very self-satisfied smirk as he worked his magic on Mia's back and the lady in question decided that Danny was absolutely right when he declared that Steve could do 'smug' better than anyone he had ever met. Steve chuckled as he carried on with his ministrations, "I love the power I have over you right now. I reckon you would sell your first born just for me to keep on with this massage." She laughed,

"Damn straight, take him – he's all yours. Now. Just. Don't. Stop." His military upbringing meant that he knew how to obey a direct order when he heard one, so he kept on with the massage until Johnny came running in to see where his next snack was coming from and Steve had to take the little boy to forage for food in the kitchen.

That night, Steve was jolted awake by the doctor swearing up a storm under her breath. She had a varied and imaginative vocabulary, having picked up more than just her medical degree from the Army. In fact, they both had to work on not letting their more colorful language reach little ears – the phrase 'swear like a sailor' was not just for effect. He sat up and turned on the light and immediately noticed the large wet patch on the rug next to the bed. Mia looked at him mournfully, genuine sorrow in her tone, "There go my waters and my bloody favorite rug – they couldn't wait to break for the 10 seconds it would have taken me to reach the bathroom? Oh why?" She let out a pained sigh as a contraction hit, "Time to get to the maternity unit, this baby girl is on her way out and I want to make full use of every pain relief drug known to modern medicine. They can stick their meditation to the sound of whales where the sun don't shine!"

Steve was at her side by that point, guiding her out of the bedroom, "Quite right, Doctor. Pharma companies have invested millions and spent years developing these drugs, it would be rude not to use them after all that effort!"

He paused when they were downstairs to quickly scribble a note for Mary to let her know that they had gone to the hospital in the night and to take care of Johnny when she woke up the next morning. She had been stopping with them the last few days for this very eventuality. She absolutely doted on her nephew and he declared her the 'best Auntie ever', the small matter of her being his only aunt not coming into it. Mia was an only child and so Johnny only had one actual aunt, but more than made up for it with too many honory aunties and uncles to count. After Mary, his next favorite was his Uncle Danno - the detective very graciously adding Johnny to the select few who were allowed to use his 'special' name. Steve had never formally be made a part of this group, but didn't let that small matter stop him from using the moniker for his partner at each and every opportunity.

Mary had decided that LA wasn't a healthy place for her to be living and had settled on the island, but had her own house – deciding that she didn't want to live in their family home, even after the renovations. She had retrained as a paralegal and was very highly thought of at her job where she had also met her fiancé, Sean Gregory. He was a great guy, although that hadn't stopped Steve from running a deep background check on the man just to be sure. At their first meeting Sean had manfully withstood Steve's scrutiny when the imposing Navy SEAL had stood right in front of him with his arms tightly folded across his chest, staring him down for a minute before introducing himself. Mary was no pushover and so anyone who could stand their ground with the younger McGarrett could also handle the big brother. Steve couldn't be happier for his little sister, she had struggled to overcome her trust issues just like he had and he was delighted that she had quashed her natural urge to self-sabotage this relationship. The wedding was happening early next year and then he wouldn't be at all surprised if a baby followed soon after – Mary would make a great Mom and had been 'practicing' her parenting skills on a very willing Johnny ever since he had been born.

Steve not only had his sister back on the island with him, but also his beloved Aunt Deb – a wonderful lady who had become a substitute Mom to them both when circumstances had taken away their own mother. She too had tired of life in LA and followed Mary back 'home'. Steve had secretly arranged for his aunt to sing at La Mariana Tiki Bar and she was a big hit, the grand old lady had a pair of lungs on her! The owner of the bar, Nicky 'The Kid' Demarco, had been blown away and offered her a contract on the spot. For his aunt, it was like a dream come true – it wasn't the big studio contract that she had been offered all those years ago but it gave her a chance to sing her sort of songs to her sort of patrons. Her 'concerts' were invariably sold out within days of the tickets being released and she was even recognized in the street by some of her fans from time to time. Whenever it happened she was probably more excited than the fan who had stopped and asked for a selfie or an autograph.

When Jonathan came along not long after she had moved back to Oahu she was overwhelmed when Steve and Mia named the baby after her brother, John. It had been Mia who first suggested the name, knowing how deeply her husband felt the loss of his father and the regret he had for not reconciling with the man when he was still alive.

But darker days lay ahead as their beloved aunt was harboring a sad secret - Deb reluctantly told Steve about her cancer diagnosis after procrastinating for months and only after landing in a jail cell when trying to score some medicinal marijuana. However, the typically stubborn McGarrett was determined to beat it and be around to see little Johnny grow up and promptly started aggressive chemo treatment and joined a support group. The lady had quite unexpectedly found love in the shape of a kindly old widower who was attending the same cancer support group on the island; they had married at the iconic Royal Hawaiian Hotel but he had tragically succumbed to the disease just a few short months after their union when his own cancer came back with a vengeance.

Steve had held his Aunt Deb as she had mourned her late husband during the funeral; life was just so cruel sometimes. She stepped up to the coffin and announced to all the mourners that she truly believed that it was better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all. She had even managed a sad little laugh at herself for saying such a terrible cliché out loud, but declared that in her case it couldn't be more true. Her last words to her husband were, "I'll miss you, Darling."

She had wanted a traditional Hawaiian sea burial after the funeral and so Steve had arranged for Kawika, the leader of the North Shore's Kapu, to take the man's ashes out to sea to conduct the sacred ceremony. The two powerful men had rested their heads together in a solemn honi before Kawika took the lei-wrapped urn and pushed his wa'a through the surf and paddled out to sea. The outrigger canoe cut gracefully through the waves until he was just a speck in the distance.

They were all devastated when Aunt Deb died in the January of '16 after a brave, but ultimately unsuccessful, battle with cancer. During the last months of her life she had been working through her bucket list and the siblings had found it in the bedside table of the guest room. Steve took it in his hand and slowly read through all the crossed out items, a little smile playing at his lips when he remembered Deb driving his truck with all the lights and sirens blaring through the 'mean streets' of downtown Honolulu. He had gone very green as she had weaved in and out of traffic, Mary and Johnnie laughing at his obvious discomfort from the back seats.

He called over to his sister, "Look Mare, Aunt Deb had made a bucket list . . ." he passed the piece of paper across to his sister, "she hasn't crossed off the last entry."

Mary read it aloud, "Climb a really tall mountain . . . we have to finish this for her, Steve." The next week they took Aunt Deb's ashes and fulfilled the very last item on her list by hiking up the Kamehame Ridge Trail in the Koʻolau Mountain Range. Little Johnny had wanted to come too and Steve alternated between carrying him and letting him walk.

Once at the top, the McGarrett family took in the spectacular view with the deep blue sea shimmering in the distance. Steve very carefully took out the urn holding Aunt Deb's ashes and looked across to his sister. Mary nodded to Steve to do the honors and he reverently held out the urn and let the ashes get taken by the wind, swirling in a beautiful pattern on the breeze and scattering over the valley far below. Mary was diligently holding onto Johnnie's hand, not trusting him near the edge of the mountain; the little boy turned to his Auntie Mary, "Do you think Great Aunt Deb will reach the ocean?" Mary gave him a watery smile, trying to keep her tears in check,

"Yeah, Johnnie. I think she will."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Jonathan had two sets of doting grandparents, Eddie and Eleanor Brown eagerly stepping into the role whenever they were on the island. Since Eddie retired, they split their time between Oahu and the mainland. Just as Steve had predicted, Harry was on the fast track to become a rear admiral by his mid-40's but this did mean that he rarely got to travel back to Hawaii and so his parents decided that they would go to him as often as they could.

Set number two was Mia's parents. They had hardly been able to contain their excitement on the birth on their first grandchild and helped with childcare as often as they could, they were both retired and loved spending time with their grandson. They only lived 20 minutes away and had proved to be indispensable on many an occasion, when Steve had an unexpected glitch in a case or Mia was stuck in surgery. They had welcomed Steve into their family as the son they never got to have. After having Mia they had tried for another child for years, but with no success.

Kaia Hope McGarrett was born the next day and all Mia had to say was, "Told you it would be a girl," as at some point during the labor Steve had raised the possibility that soon-to-be-baby could in fact turn out to be a boy and they had no names lined up for such an eventuality. He didn't mind that his wife was right, he had secretly hoped that the baby would be a girl as now they had one of each – a perfect combination.

They had chosen Kaia as it was a beautiful Hawaiian name meaning 'sea', reflecting the importance of the ocean to both Steve and Mia. Her middle name had been Mia's Grandmother's name, a wise and loving lady who had sadly died some years ago. They had already honored the memory of Steve's Dad by naming their son Jonathan; now it was Mia's turn and she wanted to keep the name of her beloved 'Nana' to be kept alive through their new baby daughter.


	70. Rocking chair reflections

**Chapter 70**

Steve laid back in the rocking chair, with baby Kaia fast asleep on his chest. She had just been fed and burped and they now had a couple of hours of blissful peace to look forward to before the whole cycle repeated itself. He took the time to reflect on where he was in his life since his return to his island home in 2010. His thoughts drifted back to the long journey from South Korea to Hawaii when he had been reeling from the death of his father and the loss of his prisoner. At that time, all he could think of was that Freddie had died in vain and it was all his fault - he had been the weak link that had allowed Victor Hesse to get a lock on their position and launch an ambush on the convoy. The pilot had invited him into the cockpit of the USAF C-17 Victory that brought him home to Oahu and he could vividly remember exactly how he had been feeling as he looked down on the meandering coastline of the place he had been born but no longer felt like home.

The SEAL had endured his father's funeral, feeling a profound sense of loss without understanding why - they had become virtual strangers and that last anguished phone call at gunpoint had been the most he had heard his father say for years. His Dad's declaration that he loved him had blindsided Steve and left him confused. He had been guilt-ridden, adrift and utterly alone . . . and now he wasn't. He had a wonderful wife, was a father to two beautiful children and had the support of his extended ohana. Plus he had the satisfaction of knowing that Freddie didn't die for nothing, Wo Fat's entire empire had been systematically dismantled.

His thoughts then turned to Five-0, the task force had seen some dramatic personnel changes but the good work that they did was constant. His first new hire had been Lou Grover, the head of the HPD SWAT division. Steve's more collaborative approach had helped him build a strong working relationship with the competent captain and the two men had hit it off almost immediately.

About 4 years ago, Captain Grover had hardly gotten the chance to unpack his bags from the flight over from Chicago before he was thrown into a tense hostage negotiation at the Palace. Five-0 had arrested a dangerous human trafficker and the other members of his crew didn't want him talking to the Task Force. They stormed Iolani Palace and were threatening to start killing the hostages. Some years ago, Steve had wanted to be prepared for this very eventuality and conducted a number of training exercises that enabled SWAT and HPD to try out various strategies and expose potential weaknesses. He had already coordinated with SWAT about his intentions to distract the hostage-takers by pretending to bring them their prisoner and they were able to carry out a perfectly-timed breach of the building. Chin had been hiding out of sight during the raid and so when he popped up behind the criminals at the same time as SWAT stormed into the Palace, they had no choice but to surrender and shortly after that found themselves as long-term guests of Halawa prison. The Governor had been delighted that the tense situation was resolved without bloodshed and that another people-smuggling ring was disrupted. By coming to them, the hapless criminals had saved Five-0 the trouble of trying to track them all down. It also sent a powerful message to other criminals that messing with the Task Force was a really bad idea.

Steve had liked the bold approach of the new SWAT captain and started to invite him to his 'ohana' cook outs and other events. They both had their demons and helped each other deal with them in their own way, Steve stepping in to deal with a reporter who had been threatening to expose the reason why Lou had left Chicago. It had incensed Steve that a tragic hostage situation in which a toddler had been shot by his own father would come back to haunt a man who was already suffering deeply from his decisions that fateful night; it wasn't an exaggeration to say that it had nearly destroyed him. There was no telling what would have been the right decision the night, if the police snipers had killed the man then all Lou would have been able to think about was how a young boy was left without a father and people like this journalist would have been berating him for not trying to talk the disturbed man down first. Hindsight didn't help anyone in this situations and it was just sad that brave men and women who would step up and be prepared to put it on all the line for total strangers would always be open to second-guessing after the fact by sanctimonious non-operators.

Later that same year, Grover's daughter was kidnapped by a computer hacker trying to get his hands on $100 million of confiscated drug money. Five-0 were coordinating the transport of the money to the airport so it could be shipped out for Third World development. Unfortunately a corrupt Dept. of Defense employee called Agent Novak beat Grover to the cash. Five-0 helped Lou recover the money and they used it to lure in the hacker, a young man called Ian Wright, who badly underestimated the skills of the Task Force and just how far a desperate father would go to save his oldest child.

What Ian Wright hadn't counted on was a military satellite being made available at Steve's request that located him as he waited just out of sight at the pre-arranged drop for the truck full of money. It took the expert intelligence officers just minutes to trace his previous movements all the way back to a suburban house. HPD immediately sped to the address and found the poor girl trapped in a large dog cage. They wasted no time in patching through the message that Samantha had been rescued. Danny had held Lou as he cried, completely overcome with relief upon hearing his 'little momma' was safe.

It meant that they didn't have to pander to the young hacker anymore and Lou had volunteered to hide behind the crate of money before Steve drove the truck to the drop site and then walked away. The over-confident thief had reached the truck, completely sure that no one would try anything when he still held the key to his hostage's location. The enraged captain had popped up from his hiding place and surprised Wright, who had stumbled backwards out of the truck. He had pulled a gun on Grover but never got the chance to fire it. Kono had picked him off from her sniper's perch and he was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital.

Although the money was safely recovered and all guilty parties either arrested or killed, the Governor had no choice but to fire Lou for gross misappropriation of SWAT resources. Steve wanted to offer the man a place on his task force and the whole team had gone looking for Grover; they found him on his favorite golf course and been delighted when he accepted the shiny Five-0 badge on the 18th hole, where the bored man had been playing his second round of the day and wondering just what his life had come to.

Jerry Ortega had been retained as a Special Consultant and had proved so useful that Steve had presented the grateful man with his very own Five-0 badge about a year ago. The talented conspiracy theorist never lost his passion for the unexplained, but also found that he rather liked helping solve crimes that could be explained as well. Steve secretly loved it whenever they all got a 'Jerry Alert' on their cell phones, as it invariably led to the team solving particularly tricky cases involving Chinese spies, secret military hardware or mysteries from the past.

Chin was now living on Maui, heading up his own task force. He and Laura had got married about 4 years ago and then Laura had been offered an amazing job on the beautiful island. She was prepared to turn it down but Chin didn't want her to miss out on the opportunity of a lifetime, her career becoming more important to her when it transpired that they couldn't have children. Steve was torn, he didn't want to lose his friend and colleague from Five-0 but also recognized that it was way past time for the highly competent lieutenant to head up his own team. He almost immediately realized that it would be selfish of him to try and convince Chin to stay and had promptly talked to the Governor. Sam Denning was quick to highlight the considerable skills of Lt. Chin Ho Kelly to the Maui County Chief of Police. He must have done a good job as the island's officials decided to create their own, albeit somewhat toned-down, version of the task force and hired Chin to head it up. The team were all very disappointed when Chin didn't take any notice of their many and varied ideas for a name, resolutely deciding to call it 'Maui Task Force' which became known simply as MTF. He liked having a three-letter acronym to shout at suspects, just like the FBI, CIA or DEA. Those seemingly innocuous three letters soon had the island's criminals wishing the task force had never been formed and Maui's Chief of Police was delighted with the successes of the MTF.

Steve spoke to Chin on a regular basis, offering advice when it was asked for and just happy to talk family when it wasn't. Maui was only a short flight away and so Chin and Laura returned to Oahu for 'Auntie and Uncle' visits as often as they could. They also both had family on Maui and had started to look into the process for becoming foster parents after Laura's uncle had invited them over for dinner and noted that they would make wonderful parents to some of the many island children who had not been so lucky in life and were desperately in need of love and guidance.


	71. Trucking hell

**Chapter 71**

At the end of the previous year, Kono had been deeply affected by a case involving young girls forced into the sex trade by ruthless businessmen. They had rescued 10 girls being held captive in a semi-truck that was refusing to stop and, even worse, the desperate driver was threatening to drive straight off a cliff and kill everyone inside the trailer. A coordinated team effort quickly followed and involved Steve jumping from the structure of the Tetsuo Harano tunnels onto the top of the speeding semi-truck as it emerged from the tunnel below him, nearly rolling right off when another man inside the truck had started shooting at him as he was cutting a hole in the top. Steve cursed as he desperately clung to the side of the trailer by one hand, he should have considered the possibility that there would be a hostile in the trailer with the girls. He used his anger at himself to fuel his determined climb back onto the top of the trailer and then jumped down through the half-finished hole in roof, his body weight causing it to crash down inside the trailer. After unceremoniously dispatching the gunman straight out of the back of the truck onto the highway, they were now ready for phase II of the crazy plan. Chin and Kono crawled along a makeshift ladder that had been hastily welded onto the front of a rescue truck. Danny drove right up to the back of the semi and they used the extended platform to transfer the girls to safety, all the while the two vehicles being driven within inches of each other at considerable speed. The cousins had not let their close proximity to the tarmac flashing under the precarious platform distract them from coaxing the terrified girls out of the trailer.

It was madness really, but it hadn't ended there. Deon Miller, the ruthless trafficker and driver of the semi had noticed and sped up, leaving one of the girls hanging from the ladder until Chin managed to pull her to safety. Steve had climbed back onto the top of the trailer and crawled across to the cab. Once he had carefully climbed down, he managed to unhook the trailer and shoot Miller as he got out of his cab to investigate. Afterwards he had attempted to snark with Danny, but his heart wasn't really in it and he found himself rambling as let his worried partner put his arm around his shoulders and lead him away. That had been close and he had very nearly been the filling for a tire sandwich on the highway.

Kono couldn't let herself rest on her laurels as she knew this was just the tip of the iceberg and followed a lead on the driver that took her to Carson City in Nevada. Once there she could see how much still needed to be done to bring down the people responsible for ruining so many young lives, the insidious network spreading out across the state and beyond. Charlie had never left Oahu and declared that it was high time that he got to see the world and so handed in his resignation and followed Kono to Nevada. He had no problem getting a job with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department's CSI unit, requesting that he be assigned to provide forensic support to the case.

That single lead had turned into multiple avenues which required further investigation and the Nevada state officials approved the funding for a task force with the sole remit of bringing down the trafficking ring. Kono was invited to head up the team and she grasped the opportunity with both hands, filling her Task Force with competent police officers and later added a couple of Federal agents when the Feds started taking an interest in her investigation. Steve mourned the loss of another friend and colleague but had seen the fire in the determined officer and couldn't do anything other than wish her well in her endeavours. She had earnt the right to lead her own team and she did it with passion and prowess.

Kono and Charlie had been married for over three years now and were a solid unit – where one went, the other one would follow. Steve and Mia had video calls with the couple every month, sharing their growing family with Kono and Charlie. The couple had discussed children, but Kono was deeply disturbed by the horrific exploitation of the young girls she rescued and confided in her husband that she didn't know if she wanted to bring a child into a world that had such darkness. Charlie understood and reassured her that he would support her, whatever her decision. They were already making significant inroads into the human trafficking network and agreed to revisit the issue if they were able to achieve the aims of their Task Force and shut down the entire operation. At that point they would most likely move back to Oahu, or possibly Maui to be close to Chin, and start a family as they both missed their island paradise 'home'. Kono especially longed for the warm Pacific Ocean waves but was prepared to forgo them for now if it meant shutting down the traffickers.

With Kono at the helm, the human trafficking Task Force freed hundreds of young girls and boys from their lives of forced prostitution and systematically chipped away at the people behind the organization. Kono put everything she had learnt on Five-0 to good use, finding imaginative and, for the most part, legal ways to get the arrested criminals talking. It was 2 long years later, but she and Charlie were sat in the public gallery watching as a prominent, supposedly respectable, businessman was convicted of being the mastermind behind the whole operation. The judge handed him a life sentence and the businessman's opulent assets were seized. It was a just punishment for the despicable man. Kono couldn't understand it, this man had children of his own and yet saw fit to destroy the lives of someone else's children for profit. The State of Nevada tried very hard to retain the crime-fighting couple, but the pull of the ocean was just too strong and Kono and Charlie came home to Oahu. The Governor had talked to the Chief of Police and together they offered Kono the opportunity to set up her own task force on the islands of Hawaii, focussing solely on human trafficking. She was quick to take the opportunity and soon had her Task Force up and running. A couple of years later she stepped back and let her SIC take the reins. Detective James Keoki was a natural, his experience in organized crime coming in handy when trying to unravel the many disparate threads of evidence and make sense of it all. Kono and Charlie welcomed a baby girl into the world just under a year after that, little Mele Fong named after Kono's much loved aunt who had died when her transplanted kidney stopped working. 

For a time, Steve had wondered if he would be able to fill the gaping void left by the departure of Chin and Kono. New hires had taken their place, bringing in some very welcome youthful exuberance, and Steve was able to see that change was inevitable and could do some good. A Navy SEAL called Junior Reigns had just turned up on his doorstep one day, looking for all the world like a lost puppy. He most likely would have offered his home to Junior, but it was a bit full with his growing family and so Mary had offered him a place to stay until he found his feet. Junior instantly hit it off with Sean, Mary's fiancé - the other man glad that Mary would have someone looking out for her when he was away on business. The couple were very sorry to hear about Junior's estrangement from his father and were gently encouraging him to make some tentative first steps towards a reconciliation. For his part, Junes listened as Mary recounted what had happened with her own father and decided that he was going to put his pride aside and make the first move. He didn't want to be in the same position of regret if he never took the chance to made it up with his Dad while he still could.

Steve had insisted that the young SEAL go through police training before he could join the Task Force and to Junior's credit he had worked hard and graduated at the top of his class. Unsurprisingly, his proficiency with firearms had been off the charts – the other recruits gaping at him in awe whenever they were at the gun range. No one had been keen to be paired with the young man when it came to mat work in the gym. It wasn't if you were going to be taken down, it was a merely a matter of when and how hard and quickly became known as doing 'The Reigns' when you were picking yourself up after another brutal takedown.

The other new hire, Tani Rey, was a real firecracker - an unpredictable ball of energy and bright as a tack. She was just what the Task Force needed and Steve knew without a doubt, even at that early stage, that it would be Tani who would take over the running of Five-0 when he retired. Without even realizing, they had started to refer to them as 'the kids' and were letting them do more and more of the heavy lifting when it came to chasing down suspects. Although, to be fair, Grover didn't do an awful lot of running anyway - preferring to use his head and chase down fleeing suspects in a vehicle or predicting their escape route and then efficiently cutting them off. He had an uncanny knack of popping up when the criminals least expected it, bringing their escape attempts to an abrupt and usually painful halt.

At the same time that Junior arrived home on Oahu, Steve had gained an unexpected new member of his family in the shape of a lively golden labrador by the name of Eddie. His handler had been tragically killed in a DEA bust gone horribly wrong and Eddie had been shot trying to take down the gunman. When the dog was at the vet's and recovering from surgery, Steve had stared into those big brown eyes and been powerless to resist. He had always declared cats to be far superior animals but there was something about this dog that had him stopping off at the nearest pet store to buy all the supplies he needed. Eddie came home with him when he was well enough to be released and never left. Little Johnny was bedside himself with excitement to have a pet and Eddie shadowed him everywhere. He also accompanied Steve on his morning swims, although Steve was sure that the canny dog waited to shake himself until Johnny ran to meet them - making the little boy shriek with delight every time.

The intelligent dog had appointed himself chief baby-watchdog and guarded Kaia like his life depended on it; Steve was pretty sure that if anyone tried to get near her then Eddie would rip them apart. He was grateful that Eddie was still a young dog as that meant that they had many happy years to look forward to. An old re-run of 'Marley and Me' had been on the TV when they were trying to get Kaia settled one night and as he watched with Mia they had both unashamedly bawled their eyes out at the end. Eddie looked just a little bit too much like the dog in the film and they had cuddled the bemused canine for a long time that night. He didn't mind though, soaking up the fuss like a pro.

Steve didn't know it yet, but in just over a year's time he would also get his chance to own a 'far superior animal' in the shape of a prize Turkish Angora cat called Mr. Pickles. He had been left to the owner's former neighbor, but the young man was unable to take the cat due to his illegal activities landing him in a halfway house while on parole. Steve and Danny had never met the owner but they had taken over the old lady's apartment for a stakeout many years prior and Steve had taken an immediate shine to the cat, even getting Ricky to help him find Mr. Pickles when the pet escaped through an open window. Danny had not been able to find a suitable home for the cat and so he had ended up coming home with Steve. After a shaky start between Eddie and Mr. Pickles, things settled down. They pretended to hate each other, but every now and again Steve would catch the cat curling up with Eddie in the sun. When Ricky finally got himself a suitable apartment and came to collect Mr. Pickles, Eddie had been bereft. Mia had visited the animal shelter and found an older cat whose owner had died. He was used to dogs and so she decided on the spot to bring him home. Marvin the cat had been named after the legendary Motown singer, Marvin Gaye, and was just as chilled. Eddie very graciously let the other animal share his dog bed, but drew the line at sharing his food. Marvin would now most certainly think twice before trying to steal Eddie's kibbles from right under the dog's nose.


End file.
